Labyrinthine
by True Author
Summary: (AU) Fate separated Anne and Gilbert a year ago when Anne was presumed dead in a train accident. Gilbert has tried his best to leave everything behind and start a fresh chapter with his son and new wife far away from Avonlea. He believes his life would never be the same, unaware of the fact that Anne is indeed alive and waiting to be found out.
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone! My name is Ashwini and I have been a huge Anne of Green Gables fan since I was merely eleven. This is my first try at writing AoGG fanfiction, so nothing would make me happier than a review so please don't leave without leaving one. :D I am completely okay with constructive criticism, but please be kind!

Also I do not own Anne of Green Gables. It is the property of the lovely L. .

Chapter One

There was a stony silence in the small blue sitting room, only a piteous sob that left his wife's shaking lips breaking it occasionally. Marilla had crashed into an armchair as soon as the letter had been passed on to her and she had not moved ever since. Davy and Dora flanked her but they might as well have been statues themselves. John Blythe held his weeping wife tenderly while trying to contain the lump that had formed in his own throat, his eyes hardly leaving his helpless son.

Gilbert stared blankly at the wall in front of him, shoulders hunched, muscles tout, fingers threaded through his hair. He had not uttered a single word since he had handed the letter to his worried mother. He had simply slid down the cold wall to the carpeted floor, his hands clenched in tight fists. Though his body shook frightfully, no tear had made its way down his pale cheeks.

Finally it was John who mustered up the courage to stand up. He had to harden his heart after all- there were many things to be taken care of. Someone had to go to Bolingbroke to meet with the police and complete all the formalities and the paperwork. There were letters that needed to be written to the people who loved Anne so dearly and there was the luminous task of answering the questions of the innocent two year old who was currently at Green Gables with Mrs. Lynde.

The night winds had begun their wild dances through the woods, the house sinking gradually into the darkness. All that had to be done could be done tomorrow, he thought. They all needed the night to process what had happened, especially Gilbert. He pressed a clean handkerchief in his wife's hands as he left her side and looked tentatively at the occupants of the room.

Before he could bring himself to speak, Dora nodded at him with assurance and gathered the stricken Marilla into her arms, whispering into her ear that she needed to sleep. He saw tears streaming silently down her cheeks as the young girl escorted her to the spare room, Davy in tow. His heart sank as he thought what this meant for Marilla, wishing he could do something to ease the pain in her heart. But there was nothing much to do- there was only a truth that needed to be accepted.

He forced himself to turn to his son and knelt onto the ground beside him.

"Gilbert, you need to be brave." He muttered in a hushed voice, trying to shake Gilbert to his senses. His hazel eyes met his fathers' in a sudden movement and John felt his heart sink at the look into his son's eyes. Gilbert shook his head furiously, his hands gripping his forearms for support. John drew a shaky breath before placing his hands on Gilbert's shivering shoulders.

"It isn't your fault, son." He said to him in a low voice, just as tears started to form into Gilbert's reddened eyes. "You know that, don't you?"

He looked at John levelly. For a minute, it looked as though he was finally going to say something, and John watched him patiently. But he only pushed himself up and away from his father and disappeared into his room.

* * *

 ** _Twelve Months later_**

Once again, Gilbert Blythe was shaken out of his peaceful slumber in the middle of the night by the familiar floating sensation. His mind was playing games with him again. At least he was aware that it was nothing but a dream this time. That seemed like an improvement at first.

 _It might be easier to run from it._ He thought.

But as much as he tried to push the unwelcome vision away, the realer it got.

He stood in the middle of a meadow this time, the sun too bright for his tired eyes. He tried to shield them with the palm of his hand, yet the scorching heat managed to get in. Eyes crinkling, he saw a slender figure moving towards him through the grass, draped in a white muslin dress. Her form seemed a bit blurred, yet the fierce red hair that contrasted her clothing was indeed unmistakable.

"Gilbert!" she said, her voice music to his ears. "Gilbert, I'm going home!"

 _No!_ He screamed inside, yet no words seemed to leave his mouth. He shifted his hand away from his eyes even as the sun continued to irritate his skin.

He would get burnt a thousand times if only he could tell her not to go.

"Say something, Darling! My train will arrive any moment now." Her voice rang in his ears.

 _No! Wait!_ He tried to say but couldn't move his mouth an inch. She must stay. She must not board the train. Otherwise the accident will happen and then she'll be gone. Again.

But she was only moving further away from him.

"No, Anne, don't go! Please don't go! Anne!" his heart raced as he shouted.

But she was gone. All he could see was a tiny dot of white against the blazing sun.

 _Anne was gone_.

His eyes shot open at the sudden realization and he looked around, panting, still wishing to stop her. His eyes adjusted to the dim lighting of the room only to find out that he was lying in his bed sixty miles from Avonlea, sweating heavily. Once again, the reality crept into his heart with a chill. It was a dream. He would never be able to stop Anne from going. She was gone.

He blinked slowly, trying to get back to the reality and realized that James's round grey eyes were peering at him with a mixture of curiosity and concern. His two year old son had managed to climb the bed with his tiny feet and now knelt onto the mattress beside him.

"Dad, get up, get up, get up!" he cried excitedly, tapping at Gilbert's forehead. The innocent boy hadn't noticed the terrified look on his father's face. "You promised that we would go to the shore today."

Gilbert gently moved his face away from James's and lightly touched the darling red curls that framed his little forehead.

"Yes he did." A voice came from the door before he could respond. Gilbert glanced up to see Winona standing there, her brown eyes sparkling. "But do you remember the other thing that he said?"

James squinted his eyes; trying to remember the conversation he had with both of them a few days before, wondering why Winona looked so stern.

"He said he would take me if I was a good boy." He finally spoke.

Winona nodded, glaring pointedly at him.

"Now, has James been a good boy?"

"Yes, I have!" he cried. "I woke up on time and I did not trouble Dad at all."

"Mum doesn't think so." She shook her head. "Does Dad get up this early on Sundays? You had promised me you would finish your breakfast first, then help me bathe Nora and _then_ we would go upstairs together to wake up Dad." She stated. "Is this how good boys behave?"

"What do good boys do then?" he queried innocently, clearly desperate to spend some time with his father that day. Otherwise he wouldn't have been so easily convinced, as far as Gilbert knew.

Winona was probably thinking on similar lines. She chuckled at his naïve response heartily and held out her hand which he eagerly caught.

"Good boys listen to the elders. Now would you go and check if Nora is up if I tell you to?"

James nodded enthusiastically and jumped from the bed. As he sprinted out of the room to the other one, Winona walked towards the bed and sat down at the end. He sat up against the headboard and pulled his covers up. Winona always seemed to sense something was wrong with him. He did not want to get her more worried than she apparently was. He tried to look as normal as he could, but he never was any good at pretending. His head still hurt a bit and he was quite sure it showed on his strained face.

"You were dreaming again, weren't you?" she asked, her voice a little edgy.

Gilbert let out a sigh.

"Yes." He accepted. There was no point in hiding. "And this one was more vivid than any that I've had before."

The defeat in his voice seemed to make Winona a tad more serious, much to his despair. She had taken his dreams lightly at first, but the consistency had started to scare her. She had been trying for a few days to convince him to consult the psychiatrist who had a clinic up in Glen; he only hoped this wouldn't push her to do that again.

"I don't think this is good." She shook her head, her brown eyes worried. "I think it's time for you to accept that it's not your fault that she died. You need to forgive yourself, Gilbert. Otherwise you would never be able to start afresh. Let the past be where it belongs."

He stared at her in disbelief, for he had hoped at least _she_ would be able to understand what he felt. She was being the one to talk about forgetting the past and a fresh start of life! He had seen her just a week before, clutching Alex's photograph to her chest, tearfully wishing him a happy birthday. But he decided against going that way. Winona seemed to be in a good mood that day and it strangely lifted his spirits when she acted that normal around him.

"I am trying." He simply said before hesitating. "But today is the day she….she died. And I could have stopped her from going. But she didn't. So it's natural if the nightmare was clearer this time."

He looked away from her face and out the window opposite the bed to avoid the sympathy in her gaze. He wished she would change the subject, which she did, much to his relief.

"I think you should go to the shore." She suggested gently. "Walk a bit, play with James. It would keep these thoughts off of your mind. I'd come to watch him if you-"

"No, you wouldn't." he stopped her midsentence, looking at her warningly. "You need to rest. I constantly remind you of that, yet you keep running around the house, doing chores."

"I like having something to do." she said absently. "It distracts me, Gilbert. And I do try to take care of my health. I promise."

Gilbert sighed.

"I just want you to be alright." He said softly.

"I am absolutely fine! Don't worry about me." She smiled and reached across to pat his hand. "I have a pretty decent doctor." She added cheekily.

He chuckled and lifted the covers.

"I really do want to go to the shore. Haven't spent time with my little lad for weeks." He said, almost to himself. "But it doesn't feel right to leave you alone with Nora. What if you need to lie down or a patient comes asking for me?"

"I have already asked Leslie to come over. She would be down before supper." She remarked.

"What about Mr. Moore?"

"Well, I believe she has talked to Captain Jim about that." She said and stood up to leave.

"Now get up and come down." She said. "The breakfast is almost ready. James wanted to eat omelets today so I made some- he needs to be fed well before you leave. He would be hungry in a minute if he runs along the shore with an empty stomach. You know how much he loves my mother's omelets with a bit of garlic and-"

She paused for a moment and then clasped her hands to her mouth as she saw the look of dislike on his face.

"Oh Gilbert!" she exclaimed. "I am such a goose! You don't like omelets with garlic in it, do you?" she eyed him cautiously. "Would you mind waiting for a bit? I'd see if I can fix something up for-"

"Winona," he said quietly, suddenly noticing the paleness in her cheeks. It was a sure sign that standing up for too long still exerted her greatly. "I wouldn't mind eating omelets with garlic for a day."

"But Gilbert-"she tried to protest.

"Please listen to me." he continued sincerely. "You don't have to do this for me. Just look after your health right now and forget the rest."

"I mean it." he continued before she could speak. "I know you feel sorry for what I am going through, but I can take care of it. At least I am trying to. Whenever I see you making efforts for me, it- it weighs me down."

"You shouldn't feel like that, Gilbert!" she said weakly, surprised at the sudden serious turn that their conversation had taken.

"But I do!" he protested. "It's bad enough that I can't give you anything, that I can't make you happy. Don't make it harder than that. You owe me nothing."

Winona frowned at his words. She did not seem to like the manner in which he spoke. He himself was surprised at the words he had dared to utter. They rarely had such serious conversations anymore.

"Gilbert Blythe," she muttered firmly. "I won't pretend I am happy, but that is _not your fault_. Stop blaming yourself for everything. And how could you say I owe you nothing? What you have done for me is worth a million. I can't even put into words how grateful I am. You have given me a much better life than I expected. I don't know what I would have done if you weren't there. You gave me a home, you gave me something to look forward to."

"But I've never given you any love." He muttered, the words escaping his mouth before he could resist.

The silence stretched between them for a moment. Winona took a deep breath and looked at him gently, her eyes wet.

"Neither have I." she whispered. "How I wish I could give you that, Gilbert!"

"Me too." He said quietly.

* * *

Anne stared at the calendar that hung on her bedroom wall, her vision blurred with tears. One year had passed since she had last seen her darling Gilbert, her son James, dearest Marilla and her beloved Avonlea too. What a wonderful life she had lived there! She missed it terribly now, having lived in loneliness for so long.

Anne wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and stood up from the small bed. Her right ankle wasn't as strong as it was before, but she could walk without limping now. The doctor had said she would be allowed to travel after ten days. She was counting down hours till that.

"Anne, darling, don't strain that leg!"

She looked at the door, startled by the sudden interruption. Mrs. Julia Shirley stood there with a tray in her hand, looking concerned. She had brought Anne breakfast.

"Why, Aunt Julia, I could have come down myself!" she exclaimed as Julia put the tray down.

"Surely you would have. But you have to rest if you want to travel with that broken leg." She said.

Anne blinked at her.

"Travel?"

"Yes! I believe I have brought up not only breakfast but a good news too." She smiled and held out a letter.

"Is it Gilbert?" she asked as she grabbed it eagerly.

"No. But it's the next best thing." Julia said with a smile.

Anne looked down at the letter and tore the envelope in a moment. It was a brief letter, yet it contained relieving news. Anne gasped.

"It's from Fred Wright." She muttered. "Diana is coming here to meet me. that is wonderful news indeed! But Aunt Julia, it is rather baffling that he says that he is surprised to know that I am… alive!"

Julia raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"I guess time would tell." She murmured, not sure what to say.

But how true that was, she had no idea.

* * *

Author's Note

I hope you guys liked this!

I know you guys have a lot of questions about the plot, but just keep reading! The story will switch between present day and flashbacks and that is how everything will be revealed. Let me know if you liked how I have decided to begin by leaving a review.

Thank you for reading! :)


	2. Chapter 2- Diana Arrives

Chapter Two- Diana

Anne was already up and brushing her long hair before the mirror when Aunt Julia came up to check on her that morning. She seemed greatly surprised and relieved as she went down again after telling her that she was going down to the garden to water her daisies. The fact that Anne had woken up early and wasn't tired was indeed an improvement, for she had rarely been up at dawn in the past one year due to weakness and more than that, because of Doctor Brown.

"The more you sleep, the faster you recover." he had advised her long ago, when her vivacious nature had made it difficult for her to lie in bed all day long and she had started to get increasingly restless. She would have flown to Avonlea the day she had regained consciousness, had Doctor Brown not warned her that he would fetch her back from the station tied up if he had to if she tried to leave without his permission. Not that she actually believed she could go- her broken leg and what Doctor Brown called a "hair crack" in her collarbone wouldn't have let her, not to mention a bleeding wound in her abdomen. It had taken her an entire year to achieve complete recovery and yet she had to practice moving around as her limbs had become stiff due lying down for an extended period. She had been more patient through this agony than she had imagined she could ever be, but now that she knew her bosom friend was coming to get her, her impulsive nature was taking over. She had given up trying to sleep in vain and had started getting ready at five o clock in the morning.

She finished putting her hair in a long braid and eyed herself satisfactorily in the mirror. Her face _had_ gained a little colour and she was quite sure that the hollows in her cheeks were filling up as time went. Even her hair had gained some of the old shine back. She had decided to don one of the nicest dresses Aunt Julia had gotten for her that day and it made her look even better. It certainly wasn't a very fancy affair to begin with, but it complimented her hair and form perfectly. It was a plain olive green dress with clinched waist and elbow length sleeves. It reminded her strongly of the dress that Gilbert had admired back in Redmond.

Her heart skipped a beat as she thought about him. She had given up guessing why he had not bothered to travel to Bolingbroke for such a long time, now she had started getting worried. She had sent him a bunch of letters through Aunt Julia and he had chosen not to reply to a single one. She had also written multiple times to Green Gables as well as to Gilbert's parents, but they had decided not to respond as well.

Sometimes having an imagination felt like a curse to her. She could think of a thousand possibilities of why none of them had replied, all of which contained horrible accidents, violent deaths or chronic illnesses. As happy as she was that Diana was coming to meet her, she was getting increasingly fearful as well. What news would Diana bring to her?

She shook her head absently, as if to discard all the inauspicious thoughts from her brain and put the hair brush down. She moved away from the mirror and descended the stairs in slow controlled movements. She guessed Aunt Julia was busy in the kitchen, she could hear her shuffling around in there. When Anne went in, she was standing by the stove, making tea.

"Good morning, Anne." she greeted as she did every morning, but her tone seemed colder than usual.

Anne wished her a lovely morning in return and went on to stand by her side.

"Where is Linda? Didn't she bring you your tea this morning?" Julia asked.

Anne bit her lip. Linda really hadn't made her usual trip upstairs that day, but she knew that Aunt Julia would scold the poor girl endless if she told and she did not want to trouble her at all.

"She must think I am still asleep, Aunt Julia. I woke up earlier today." She protested.

Surprisingly she looked convinced.

"Fair enough. Now, let me make some more for you."

"Thank you." Anne muttered and settled at the kitchen table, eyeing her silently.

Even though Aunt Julia looked pretty much like she usually did, there was something different that day. During the past one year, Anne had seen many shades of Aunt Julia. There were days when she would be a happy, caring lady who liked to tend to her house and felt genuine love and concern for her niece, but at certain times she had seen another side of her. occasionally, Julia would abruptly become cold and distant as if she had crawled into a shell. It was natural to be fair- she had recently lost her husband to a chronic illness that stretched for three long years and her son lived somewhere in Halifax, her life was lonely for the caring housewife she was. As far as Anne knew, her son rarely wrote any letters to her. But they did come once in a while- spanning from ten to fifteen pages, they were long and possibly descriptive. One letter contained enough news and affection to keep Aunt Julia in good spirits for months ahead. She had never told Anne anything about him; except that his name was John and that he was a musician.

Today was one of Aunt Julia's gloomy days. John had not sent her any letter for almost six months now and Anne could feel her getting worried as each day passed. She merely sat at the table observing her Aunt and said nothing. After a few minutes, Aunt Julia herself broke the silence.

"I have asked Doctor Brown to come down today." She said in a steady voice. "I just want to make sure you are fit to travel, if that friend of yours wants you to go back with her."

"Oh, that's splendid." Said Anne cautiously. "I believe she would expect me to go with her. She has two little children of her own; she cannot leave them alone for long."

Aunt Julia nodded as she finished making tea. She pulled two cups and saucers from the cabinet, still looking outside the window.

"His letter finally came." she murmured. "I made a trip to the post office last evening."

"Oh." That was all Anne could manage to utter. She wondered why Aunt Julia was in such a mood even though the letter had finally come. What news did it carry?

"Did you- did you read it?" she asked slowly.

"Yes." She answered absently. "He says he is coming home."

"Why Aunt Julia, that is great news!" Anne cried. "Isn't this what you always wanted?"

There was a sad smile tugging at Aunt Julia's mouth.

"Now I wish I hadn't asked God to send him home, Anne." She said shakily. "He's coming home because he is sick. Very sick." She added scornfully.

"What is it?" Anne gasped, fearing the answer.

"Tuberculosis." She murmured, her voice getting heavy. "At least that is what the doctors at Halifax think. I wouldn't believe it until Doctor Brown would tell me so. But- it's eating me out. What is tuberculosis Anne? You must know about it- your husband is a Doctor."

Anne hesitated for a minute. She could remember one patient from White Sands that Gilbert had treated for tuberculosis. He had done quite a research on that matter for him and had told Anne that there were a few types of the disease which do get cured with time, but there are some which cannot be healed at all. Nonetheless, she was absolutely sure that it was not an easy disease to treat. How she wished Gilbert was there!

"I-don't know for sure," she said finally.

Aunt Julia sighed as she poured tea for both of them.

"I believe we'll find out when he'll come home." She looked at Anne before taking a sip from her cup. "Have you packed your things already?"

Anne shrugged, picking up her own cup and swirling the tea nervously.

"I haven't. No yet." Anne shook her head. "I was so busy worrying exactly what she will tell me about my family that I forgot to."

"Everything will be alright." Aunt Julia patted her hand affectionately across the table. "I'll miss having you here though… It gets quite lonely here without David. We used to travel a lot before he got sick. I am not used to living in one place for longer than a year."

"I'll miss you too. And Linda and Doctor Brown too." Said Anne."But I cannot wait to go home- I just cannot!"

It was strange though. She had waited for an entire year with patience, yet only a few hours that stretched before her seemed like an eternity to her. She went up to her room after breakfast and tried taking a nap, but ended up tossing and turning, sleepless. Giving up, she decided to read a new book that Aunt Julia had gotten from the village library, which turned out to be so romantic that it kept reminding her of Gilbert. Aunt Julia understood her state of mind and asked her to come down and help her prepare supper, much to Anne's relief.

Though cooking did distract her for a while, she immediately discarded the ladle spoon she was holding and almost ran out when she heard the sound of a horse coming up the lane.

Anne stood in the doorway as a plump, rosy cheeked lady in a dusty pink dress descended from the buggy, her hair as dark as ever and her smile as sweet as it was years ago. Her eyes immediately shot towards the little white house and her pupils widened as she saw her childhood friend standing there with tears in her eyes. Forgetting that she was now a dignified woman of twenty eight, Diana Wright ran up the steps leading to the house, holding her skirts up and pulled Anne into a tight embrace, sobbing heavily.

"Anne, oh, Anne!" she kept repeating, crying into her shoulder. Anne was in tears herself, yet she stroked Diana's hair, trying to help her gain control. Diana held Anne firmly and let all the happiness flow like a river through her eyes. Anne closed her eyes and inhaled the comfortable smell of her friend's hair. The embrace felt familiar, as if she was coming home. It comforted her more deeply than anything else could have.

Eventually Diana wiped her eyes and released Anne long enough to look at her.

"I- I cannot believe you are really here Anne." She sniffed. "I- we all thought we lost you. You- are you really alive?"

Anne could not believe her ears.

"What-"

"Oh, Anne- we all thought you were dead! We all did!"

"But- but I _wasn't. I –"_

She turned around as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Aunt Julia had stepped out of the house.

"Let's just go inside first, Anne dear." She suggested calmly. She signaled Linda who was working in the garden to get Diana's luggage and welcomed her guest into the house.

"A letter came to the Avonlea post office looking for a Miss Anne Shirley two days after the accident." Diana narrated after they had settled down into the house. "It was from the police- it said there was fire in the train and that they found you dead and had cremated you as the body was badly burned. They had found your luggage in the compartment that caught fire and your name was engraved on the suitcase. Gilbert even came all the way here to get some of your things that were intact."

Anne could hear her heart thumping as she heard Gilbert's name.

"Diana, where is he? Where is Gilbert?"

Diana's expressions were unreadable as she heard the question. Was it sadness? Sympathy? Much to Anne's surprise, it looked as if Diana had _feared_ the question.

"Anne, he is in Four Winds."

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

 _The sun shone brightly over the small blue house that stood by the river, perched alone on the greenish lawns, away from any other. It was a breezy summer morning, the kind which makes you want to get up, pack some snacks and march off to have a delightful picnic up the hill. But that was not the case with the ever energetic Anne Blythe that day._

 _She lay in her bed, still half asleep, even though the dawn had passed long ago. She had been up till two the night before, waiting for her husband to come home, who had went up to Charlottetown for a complicated delivery. She had managed to keep herself for a long time, but sleep had taken over the tired wife late at night and Gilbert had not arrived till then. She opened her eyes slowly, trying to adjust her vision to the brightness of the sunlight and turned her head to glance at her husband's side of the bed._

 _Much to her pleasure, Gilbert Blythe was curled up beside her, still in his clothes, looking rather tired in his slumber. She could see the dark circles forming under his eyes and noticed how thin he had become. He still looked boyish and innocent nonetheless, his chestnut locks curling on his forehead and eyes fluttering at the sunlight that had managed to enter from the gap between the closed curtains. She turned to her side, facing him and stroked his cheek affectionately._

 _He had not slept properly for nearly a week now, for he always arrived home late into the night. She felt a pang of guilt at this thought- it was partly her fault that he had to put such efforts into establishing his practice in Avonlea. She was the one who had insisted on staying near Marilla and Gilbert's parents after their wedding. Gilbert had obliged to what she had said, and she couldn't help but feel guilty at her decision as she saw him struggling to cope with the competition that he faced from several other doctors peppered across the region, much more experienced and senior than him._

 _The trust that other doctors had built throughout Avonlea and the towns around it had made Gilbert's newly set practice suffer tremendously. Due to the lack of number of patients close by, he often travelled to White Sands, Charlottetown or sometimes even further to keep up with their economic needs. Anne had thought about resuming her post as the teacher in the Avonlea school, but Joy's birth and death and later the conception of James had lead her to drop it eventually._

 _She suddenly recalled how he had mentioned about month ago that his great-uncle who lived somewhere sixty miles away from them had offered him to take over his practice once he retired in June next year. Though he had not brought up the subject after that, Anne decided to consider moving there seriously. They could take Marilla with them if her health issue got even worse, she knew Gilbert wouldn't refuse to that. John and Laura were still in pretty good health and they would always be welcome wherever the couple would decide to set up their new home._

 _"I don't want you to tire yourself like this." She whispered softly into his ear and kissed his stubbly cheek tenderly._

* * *

 _Author's Note_

First of all, I would like to thank all the lovely people who read and reviewed the first chapter. The interest that you showed in my story inspired me to work harder on the plot as well as my writing.

Each chapter will be divided into two sections from now on- present day situation and flashback to give a peek into what the situation was before the train accident took place. My current plan is that I would put up a new chapter every Tuesday and I would try my best to stick to that.

Lastly, please leave a review and tell me what you think of the story. :)

Thank you for reading!

Love,

Ashwini


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"Four Winds!" a bewildered Anne exclaimed. "The harbor?"

Diana nodded, smoothing her skirts on the knees absently. For reasons Anne could not understand, her friend seemed to have become particularly silent after she had inquired about Gilbert and it scared her a little.

"But, I don't understand." She shook her head. "Why did he move?"

"Well, I don't know much about that either." Diana sighed. "After he found out that you were dead, none of us saw him for a very long time. He had shut himself into his room for days straight and refused to leave the house for anything. He started losing his patients slowly and that was when Marilla and his parents started to get worried about him. They had thought initially that he would be himself once he grieved for a while but he did not show any sign of sadness at all. He went strangely numb. He had not cried after the day the news came. And suddenly he was determined to leave Avonlea because it had too many memories of you."

Anne's heart broke as she heard Diana's words. Poor Gilbert! Her heart was getting heavier by every minute. How had he managed to live without her? What was he doing in a strange town away from Avonlea? What about James? What about his practice? She did feel like she had heard something about Four Winds from him once, but she could not remember what exactly he had said.

"He came to Bolingbroke first to collect what remained of your luggage." Diana continued in a hushed voice. "And then packed the entire house in a week or so. He did come to say goodbye." She looked as if she was recalling something particularly painful. "He said he was going to Four Winds to take over his great-Uncle's practice. He took Marilla with him for a few months so that she could look after James while he was busy setting up everything."

"Is she still with him?" Anne asked worriedly, realizing that Four Winds was the harbor where she and Gilbert had considered moving a while before the accident. She was somewhat glad that James was with his Grandma Marilla, yet she could not comprehend how the poor child would live without his mother. As far as she remembered he refused to let go of her for a minute.

Diana shook her head.

"No." she hesitated before speaking. "She returned to Green Gables after three months. She couldn't leave Mrs. Lynde alone with Davy and Dora for longer than that."

Anne shifted nervously in her seat. She found herself unable to imagine how Gilbert would juggle between taking care of James and his practice. He often had to leave on a very short notice, even in the middle of the night. Would he have hired a housekeeper? Or was he letting his practice suffer to fulfill his duties with James?

"But I don't understand, Diana." She spoke eagerly. "How is it possible for him to make time for looking after James? As far as I know, Uncle Dave has a fairly large practice. I can imagine how busy he must be there."

Diana bit her lip. She had heard many rumors that Gilbert Blythe had married a local girl since the past few months. When she had asked Marilla during her visit to Green Gables, she and Rachel had exchanged knowing looks and Marilla had only said- "he hasn't. But he probably will very soon." She had not dared ask who the girl was or how he had met her. She could never imagine Gilbert with anyone else if not with Anne. She had seen how much he had loved her friend since she was eleven years old. She did not want to know the truth, for she feared she wouldn't be able to bear it and had decided to drop the subject entirely.

"I have no idea, Anne." She managed to say. She did not want to scare Anne unnecessarily when she herself was unaware of the truth. But if Gilbert had really married someone else, she did not know how her sensitive friend was going to deal with it. She looked at Anne sympathetically before speaking.

"I think you should come home with me, Anne." She said softly. "You'll get to meet Marilla, Rachel, the twins and everyone else. Then we can ask Marilla if we can go see Gilbert. She must know exactly what he's been up to."

Anne had reluctantly agreed to the plan, even though she felt she could hardly be alright until she made sure Gilbert and James were fine. But when Doctor Brown arrived, his dark thick glasses as threatening as ever, he refused to allow her that.

"You cannot travel back to Avonlea and then again to Four Winds." He said, shaking his head with a sense of authority. "You may have recovered, Anne, but I believe your muscles are still adjusting to movement due the months you have spent mostly in bed."

"But Doctor Brown!" she cried.

"Look, Anne. I understand your feelings." He nodded. "But I can only allow you one journey from here, and that too if you have someone accompanying you. You have to choose between Avonlea and Four Winds."

"I am sorry, Anne." Diana said apologetically. "How I wish I could travel to Four Winds with you! But I've left the children with my parents and I have to go back soon."

Anne understood. But she wanted to see Gilbert and her son desperately. But who would accompany her all the way to the harbor? She didn't even know where it was or if there was any train that went there from Bolingbroke. She would have asked Aunt Julia reluctantly, but her own son was set to come home after what she believed to be a very long time. She did not want to deprive her of that happiness. Also, Four Winds was not a small town as far as she knew. She could never write to Gilbert without knowing the exact town he lived in and she did not much about the harbor either.

"If you don't mind, Anne," Aunt Julia spoke, breaking the silence. She had been immersed deep into thoughts till then. "There is one way to know. I know a woman from Four Winds. I boarded with her for a while two months before you came here I think. I went to the harbor not long after David died. I could write to her and ask her if she knows any young Doctor Blythe. It is very likely that she knows your husband and she might even give him your message."

"Oh, that makes sense." Anne nodded.

"Her name is Mrs. Moore. Leslie, I think her first name was. I can assure you she would assist us. We went along quite nicely."

Diana was requested by Aunt Julia to stay for a couple more days for Anne's sake to which she eagerly agreed. Although Anne was delighted that she had met Diana, she could not help but get restless about Gilbert and James. How were they managing on their own? She could not understand.

She couldn't also figure out why Diana was acting so mysteriously with her. She often behaved like that when she hid something from Anne. She wondered if she knew something that she could not say in front of Aunt Julia or Doctor Brown, which did very little to keep her troubled mind calm.

* * *

Gilbert Blythe let out a long sigh of content and dropped his pen victoriously into its holder as he finished writing his reply. The letter that he had just received from a hospital from Montreal had lifted a huge burden from his chest. Dick Moore, or rather the person everyone had believed to be him for over a decade, was recovering rapidly and his sister had thanked Gilbert profusely in the two page long epistle for saving his life. He had not heard from Leslie as of yet, which he quite understood. He could imagine what it would be like for her- as if she had been living a lie all this while. Yet he was very glad that she was free from the chained life she had endured for so long.

He got up from his chair and walked towards the large window in his office. It was quite dark outside- he must have been sitting there for hours straight. He shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his trousers only to find out that his left pocket was slightly torn at the bottom. He sighed exasperatedly; making a mental note of informing Winona that he needed some new clothes.

At the thought of this, he suddenly realized that he had been locked away into his office for hours, yet she hadn't come to call him for supper yet. He wondered if she wasn't feeling well again and decided to go see for himself. Winona often hesitated when coming to him for help despite his multiple warnings about the seriousness of her illness and it unsettled him a little. Nora was almost a month old now, yet Winona still struggled to recover from the difficult childbirth she had had to face and Gilbert did not think she had shown any promising sign of recovery. He had scolded her often whenever he felt that she was neglecting her health, but she continued to take care of him and their house all day long and looked frightfully tired in the evening. He wondered if it was time to hire a housekeeper for them.

He came out of his office, yawning and stretched his sore muscles. He had worked tirelessly for an entire week due to the sudden flu outbreak into the fishing village and felt that a warm meal and a good night's sleep would do him good that day.

Winona was sitting on one of the steps that lead to their house, staring intently into the dark, when he found her. He instantly sensed something was wrong as he looked at her form from a few feet away judging from how still she was sitting. Even the house seemed strangely still and darker than usual. He gently settled down beside her on the step and glanced sideways at her. She shifted nervously as she saw that Gilbert had arrived and gently dabbed at the corners of her eyes. He wondered if she had been crying.

"Where is James?" he asked, not sure what to say.

She looked at him pointedly.

"He is with Miss Cornelia. She took him home because I wasn't feeling well." She said. "I slipped a note for you."

Gilbert frowned, puzzled. He realized he must have been too absorbed in his work and might have stepped on the said note while coming out.

"You're not feeling well?" he queried. "What happened? Why didn't you call me? Does it hurt? What-"

"Gilbert." She interrupted stonily. "I am alright."

"Then James- why did Miss Cornelia take him with her?" he asked, surprised.

Winona took a shaky breath.

"Alex came back." She said her voice barely a whisper. "I saw him in the market today."

"Oh." Was all Gilbert could utter. Her reply had rendered him speechless. He had feared often that this day would come and had decided what his response would be as well. He had decided not to keep her chained to him if she wanted to leave.

"Is he here for you?" he asked calmly.

Winona closed her eyes at his question.

"I don't know." She muttered. "And it doesn't matter. I don't care anymore."

He did not say anything about what she said.

"Does he know we are married?" he questioned.

"Apparently he does." She said. "He saw me and James in the market and started asking questions. He was not happy."

"That fellow never liked me." Gilbert muttered, remembering the times he had encountered Alex, none of them particularly pleasant.

Winona gave him a bitter smile.

"Oh, he likes you alright!" she exclaimed. "It's typical Alex. Wanting what he can't have. Being jealous of people I get close to. It's just- it's making me sick."

"What if he asks you to go with him?" he said quietly, preparing himself for her answer.

"I'm not a young girl anymore, Gilbert." She said sternly, sensing where the conversation was going. "I married you knowing that there was a chance that he would return. I _chose_ to be with you instead of chasing him all around the globe. He has left me before, Gilbert and I cannot risk that again."

He could see the tears forming in her eyes as her voice grew heavier.

"You wouldn't go? Even though you know you love him?"

This seemed to surprise her a little, but she recovered soon. There was no point in pretending that she didn't love Alex and that Gilbert didn't love Anne. They both knew how each other felt and had never lied to each other about the emotions. In fact they had often shared things about the people they loved and even though it might seem like something that breaks a relationship, it had formed a solid foundation on which their marriage was built upon. Gilbert often thought of Winona as his best friend more than his wife to be honest. Perhaps she felt the same because she didn't deny her feelings for Alex.

"I might- I might love him." She agreed, though a bit reluctantly. "But I don't trust him anymore. I have tried before and I failed miserably. Twice. But I trust _you_ immensely, Gilbert. You won't leave me alone, I am sure about that. And I'm not leaving you either."

Gilbert smiled at her gratefully, feeling relieved. He did not know what he would have done if she had decided to leave him. He wondered what exactly he felt about Winona in that moment- she had been his first friend in Four Winds, his medical help and then his wife. But more than any of that, she had been a steady support. She was the one who had helped him pick up the pieces after Anne died and had been a rock even though her own life was crumbling at that time. He often felt that Winona was a warrior who fiercely protected herself and those around her in times of difficulty.

"What would I do without you, Winona?" he said teasingly, but meaning what he said. "You are the axis of my life around which my life revolves."

Winona swatted him on the arm playfully, even though she still seemed forlorn.

"You're only saying this because you are hungry." She muttered, wiping her eyes.

"Perhaps."

He laughed and ducked away as she tried to hit him again and followed her into the house.

Alex Witherspoon stood into the shadows of the trees surrounding the small house fuming with jealousy. So she _had_ married the handsome doctor in the end. The man who was supposed to be only a platonic friend. He had predicted this long ago, when she had constantly denied it. He crushed a twig angrily with his foot.

"I'm not leaving without you, Winona." He said, clenching his teeth. "But I'm running out of time."

And then he walked away, slowly making his way down to the house he had rented for a month. Only the winds remained as the hungry and tired couple dined by the warm fire inside their home, oblivious of what was to happen.

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

 _Winona Smith clutched at the branch of the tree nearby that hung low, panting heavily. She looked back anxiously, her coffee brown eyes scanning the woods for any sign of him. Much to her fear, Alex had easily caught up with her and stood a few feet behind, catching his breath, looking at her with pleading eyes. She turned her face away from him and gripped the branch tighter as if bracing herself for the moment she had feared for long._

Face him, Winona! _She scolded herself as she heard his footsteps coming closer. Soon enough, she felt the warm pressure of his calloused hand on her shoulder which she shrugged off more forcefully than she had intended to._

 _"_ _Winona, please." He said, still breathless. "Please, talk to me."_

 _"_ _I have nothing to say to you." she snapped, her face burning with anger._

 _"_ _Then listen to me." he persisted, tugging at the sleeve of her periwinkle blue dress nervously._

 _Winona gathered her wits and turned around to face him, trying to be brave. She eyed his tall, lean form for the first time since she had seen him wandering on the shore before she had started running and she couldn't help but notice how much he had changed in past nine years. He had grown much taller and broader than she remembered and his ebony hair had grown so long that it slightly brushed his shoulders. But his soft hazel eyes were as charming as ever and there was a sense of familiarity somewhere that she couldn't help but savor._

 _He took her silence as a permission to speak and drew a shaky breath._

 _"_ _Look, Winona, I'm sorry." He spoke hurriedly, fearing she would snap at him again. "I've been sorry ever since I left. But I was young and naïve. I had dreams that needed me to be in some big city and not here in a small town like Glen. I-"_

 _"_ _Alex, listen to me." she said in a sincere tone, yet her stomach gave a jolt as she took his name for the first time in years. "I do not need any explanation. Whatever happened with us back then- it's over. It was a long time ago. Things have changed now, Alex. We're not sixteen anymore. I have moved on."_

 _He looked at her pointedly, his eyes burning with more intensity than she could handle._

 _"_ _Then why did you run?"_

 _Winona closed her eyes again, thinking for the answer herself. She had been wondering the same. She had gone to the shore to relax after a long tiring day with Gilbert due to a difficult childbirth and meeting Alex suddenly seemed too much for her to handle. It was her first instinct to run from him as far as possible. But why had he chased her into the woods? Why was he there? She could not figure out._

 _"_ _Why are you here?" she asked, ignoring the question he had posed._

 _He pursed his lips, noticing how she had avoided his question._

 _"_ _I am writing another book." He told. "I needed some inspiration."_

 _"_ _Then go write it." she quipped. "Why are you even bothering with me? Let me live my own life, please."_

 _"_ _I can understand that you don't want me in your life now." He said in a shaky voice. "And I respect that, I really do. But I need to know one thing."_

 _Her eyebrows shot up in surprise._

 _"_ _What?"_

 _"_ _What happened to you?" he asked, eyeing her up and down. She looked down at herself, startled, following his gaze. She was wearing a perfectly presentable dress, if not the best and her hair was neatly tucked into a golden bun._

 _"_ _Excuse me?"_

 _"_ _You seem different." He shrugged. "You're definitely not the Winona that I knew. Since when do you tie your hair like- like the old ladies we used to laugh at during church? And you work as a nurse for Doctor Dave? What about your love for music? What about poetry?"_

 _This hit her hard. Sure, she wasn't the same person she was when she was a young foolish girl. But wasn't that obvious?_

 _"_ _As I said before, we have grown up." She said, feeling hurt. "Time changes people. I don't live like I used to because my situation is not the same. Not that you would care or anything, but just so you know, my life is not how it used to be."_

 _"_ _Why?" he asked tenderly. "I heard that your mother died and that your dad-"_

 _"_ _It's none of your business." She blurted. "Yes, I lost my mother. Yes, my father and I do not talk anymore because I found out that he had a mistress on side for more than a decade. Are you happy? Are you glad to know how awful my life has become after you left me like I was a piece of furniture?"_

 _Her angry words seemed to leave him speechless. He took a step forward towards her and she stepped back to press her back against the tree trunk to maintain distance._

 _"_ _I have to work, Alex. Even though I don't like it at times." She whispered angrily. "I am not a trained nurse, but I am learning. And I have to do this job if I want to continue living."_

 _"_ _Did Doctor Dave offer you the job?" he asked skeptically, knowing that he had perfectly good nurses of his own. At least he did nine years ago._

 _"_ _No, it's his nephew." She said even though she had no interest in continuing this conversation. "Doctor Gilbert Blythe. He is taking over Doctor Dave's practice. He does not know the people around here nor the town. I am just helping him out and learning to be his medical help. But it's truly none of your business. Why are you even asking?"_

 _"_ _I thought you were happy." He muttered, not particularly to her nor to himself. "I thought you were safe. But-"_

 _"_ _I am safe. I am happy." She snapped at him. "I am perfectly well without you, thank you very much. We were friends, I fell in love with you and then you left me abruptly so that you could go chase your dream to be a poet. That's all that happened between us. Now it's time to move on."_

 _Alex walked towards her as if he was in a daze.. She stood there transfixed as he drew near to her, pressing her body gently into the tree. Her eyes fluttered nervously as he inched his face closer towards hers, slowly closing the gap between them. She suddenly remembered just how passionate their love had been all those years ago- how close they were to crossing the boundary that only married couples dared to touch and the memories came crashing back to her. She clutched at the soft fabric of his shirt and opened her mouth to protest, but he pulled her lower lip into his mouth and kissed her expertly, exactly the way she used to like. The ten long years between them seemed to melt away as his firm yet soft lips moved against hers and she felt like the Winona she had left behind once upon a time when she finally gave into his touch._

 _She did not know how long they kissed, but she regained her senses when he tried to slide his tongue further into her mouth and pushed him away with all her might. She threw him a warning glare as he panted and ran away once again, hoping that he would not follow._

* * *

Author's Note-

Thank you once again for the lovely reviews that you left for chapter two! Reading what you guys think really makes my day. I hope you like this chapter as well. I have tried to give you an insight into what Winona is like and also a snippet about her past with Alex. Please let me know if you liked this one!

Love,

Ashwini.


	4. Chapter 4

Labyrinthine- Chapter Four

Marilla Cuthbert refused to believe her ears. It angered her that Diana Wright would play such a cruel game with her. Hadn't she spent an entire year trying to accept that her Anne had died? How dare she come and say that she wasn't! Her words would have elated her if heard a few months ago, but now she could not dare hope.

"No."

Diana's dark eyes were sympathetic as she leaned closer to Marilla across the kitchen table of Green Gables.

"I know it is difficult for you to believe." She said. "But it is true. She is alive."

She felt as if Diana had stabbed her in the chest. Her heart beat faster than it ever had as she listened to her. Should she dare to hope? She just remained still, fearing she would wake up any second only to know that this has been nothing but a dream. Marilla had never found comfort in dreams or imagination. She was not going to fall for this. This was either a dream or she had misheard.

But why were these words crashing down her walls? She swallowed hard, trying not to break down. She had not talked about Anne since a very long time and every time someone said her name it hurt her like physical pain. She could not imagine what a false hope would do to her.

"No." she repeated.

Diana walked around the table and knelt on the floor, facing her. Her defenses had not surprised her- she surely had expected this kind of reaction. She gently placed her hands on Marilla's forearms as if trying to prepare her for a shock.

"Listen to me, Marilla." She pleaded, staring intently into Marilla's empty eyes. "Anne is alive. She is at her Aunt's house in Bolingbroke. I was skeptical about it myself, but I _saw_ her there, I spoke to her. She is severely injured, but alive, nonetheless."

"Anne is gone." Marilla managed to say through quivering lips. How could Anne be alive? She had died in a train accident while on her way to her Aunt's house. Didn't the police say she was completely burnt in the fire? Hadn't they identified her body through the circlet of pearls she was wearing? Hadn't Gilbert gone to Bolingbroke to collect her luggage? He himself had confirmed that the ring that the police had found on the dead girl's finger was indeed Anne's engagement ring. And now this young girl wanted to convince her that Anne was alive and safe in Bolingbroke? She could not fathom which one was the truth.

As the battle went on it her head, Diana fumbled into her purse to produce a folded piece of paper and gently slid it into Marilla's shaking hands. She unfolded it absently to reveal a brief piece of writing that resembled a letter. She could not be sure what it was; for her reading glasses were perched on top of her sewing in the living room. She held it up at a distance, her eyes focusing intently on the dark ink. Though she could not perceive the words, her heart sank as she recognized the enormous "D" at the beginning of the letter. It was exactly how Anne used to write. She blinked vigorously, trying to concentrate.

"D-dear Marilla." She muttered.

The realization went through her like a jolt and the letter dropped to the floor as she stood up and covered her mouth with her hands. It was Anne's handwriting- there was no doubt to it! Diana's words came crashing down to her and she looked at the young girl, horrified. A relieved Diana stood up from the floor, her dark eyes dancing between Marilla's.

"Anne is alive?" Marilla uttered the words like honey to her mouth. "She- she wrote this letter for me and- and you've met her?"

"I did meet her." Diana answered, beaming.

Marilla stared at her in shock and clutched the back of her chair for support.

"How- how did this happen?" she exclaimed. "Did the police lie?"

Diana pursed her lips and repeated the story she had heard from Anne and Mrs. Shirley during her two days long visit.

"Anne remembers very little of that night. She says she jumped from the train when she saw the compartment was on fire. The next thing she remembers is waking up at her Aunt's house in Bolingbroke. Her Aunt says the people from the village found her unconscious by the rail two miles away from her station and took her to Doctor Brown. He guessed she was related to the Shirleys because she had a handkerchief with her name embroidered on it."

"Oh…" Marilla sank down onto her chair and rubbed her temple with her hands. "Is she alright? Why did she wait for so long? Why didn't she come back?"

"She was severely injured when they found her." Diana narrated in a hushed voice. "Her doctor said she had a broken leg, a crack in her collarbone and a severe wound in the stomach. She has not left the house for an entire year- it took her that long to recover. Her doctor only recently allowed her to travel."

"Then why didn't you get her here?" she questioned, still processing the truth. The initial shock was slowly washing away and she felt a tiny flicker of joy spreading through her body. She heart thumped loudly at the possibility of Anne returning to her house.

"The doctor said he would allow her only one journey from Bolingbroke." She explained. "She said she wanted to go to Four Winds to meet Gilbert and James first and then you could travel there to-"

Fear crept into Marilla's heart as she heard the name of the harbor. She had been so preoccupied trying to believe that Anne was alive that she had forgotten what this meant for Gilbert. She automatically glanced at Gilbert's letter she had been reading before Diana arrived. It lay innocently besides her stitching.

"Winona." She muttered, horrified. "What about Winona?"

Diana blinked in confusion.

"Who?"

Marilla looked at her with terrified eyes.

"Gilbert's new wife."

Her reply seemed to render Diana speechless. She finally resumed her seat across the table.

"So he did get married." She murmured in disbelief.

Marilla closed her eyes momentarily and nodded. The two ladies sat there in silence, their happiness now taken over by worry. Marilla did not know how Anne was going to react to this. Surely, Gilbert had only married for James's sake and because he believed Anne to be dead. But would Anne understand? Marilla knew her temper and was aware how her heart ruled her mind.

She couldn't help but feel sorry for Winona as well. Poor, poor girl! She had no doubt she would collapse if Gilbert left her for Anne. And why wouldn't he? Wasn't Anne the one he always loved? But they now had a newborn daughter as well. She had spent quite some time with Winona during her last visit to Four Winds along with Gilbert's parents. She was an excellent housekeeper and a very lively woman. What was the poor girl's fault? She had only married a man whose wife had died.

"How did it happen?" Diana asked slowly.

"She was his medical attendant." Marilla muttered. "Gilbert couldn't afford to hire a trained nurse- he had already spent a fortune on setting up his clinic and house. You know how his practice was here; he had no money. Winona was desperately looking for work. His Uncle recommended her to him."

"And he fell in love with her?" Diana questioned rather sternly. She would have believed that Gilbert had married within a year of Anne's death but she could not bear to think he would love another woman in a month.

"I wouldn't say that." Marilla shook her head. "But they went along really well. He talked to her about Anne- that was what gave me relief actually. Gilbert desperately needed a friend and he never really had one apart from Anne. I was the one who suggested he should marry her." she closed her eyes. "I told him that a marriage requires two people to be friends more than lovers. I wouldn't have if I had known there was a chance Anne would return! I might have hurried a little, but I only wanted him to be happy and well. Winona is a wonderful girl. He did not refuse me at that time. I had never thought he would marry her so soon though. But I was glad he did. That poor boy needs someone to look after him."

"How are we going to tell Anne?" lamented Diana. "And what would Gilbert do when he finds out that Anne is alive? Would he leave her for Winona or the other way round?"

"That is for him to decide."

 ** _Flashback_**

 _He stared at the serene ocean as the familiar pain seared through him once again. He had learnt to push the pain away and focus on his work lately, but his mind had refused to cooperate that day._

 _Winona had put Anne's framed photograph on his desk. And he had flipped out._

 _He closed his eyes, his heart getting heavy. He should not have shouted on her like that. She had only done it because it was his birthday and she wanted to gift him something special. The photo usually remained buried deep down in his desk drawer and she had found it a few days ago while cleaning it. It was natural for her to think it would be the best gift she could give. He should have thought rationally before shouting at her- she knew nothing of what had happened. He felt ashamed that he had lost his temper so quickly. What had happened to him? He loved Anne from his very soul. Why had a mere photograph become so unbearable to him?_

 _It seemed like he lost his usual compose whenever someone even mentioned Anne. He knew it wasn't anyone's fault that she left him, yet it angered him to no extent that life had taken Anne away from him. And the frustration often victimized the people around him. That was one of the reasons he had left Avonlea as soon as the news of Uncle Dave's death had arrived._

 _But the truth did make him furious. He had seen a lot of couples who were miserable together, yet lived together well into their seventies. He loved every inch of his wife- both heart and soul. Then why him? Why her? The absence of the answer to this question only added to the storm that went on in his mind._

 _When he had heard the news about Anne- the first thought that raged throughout him was death. The only reason he had not taken any self harming step was his son. Would he have killed himself out of despair if James had not been born at all?_

 _Perhaps he would have._

 _He had begun to believe that life was a constant struggle that would end with life itself. He could not find the mischievous, arrogant, spirited Gilbert Blythe anywhere these days. He could not remember what he was without Anne._

 _What was the use of this medical practice? Why bother to save the lives of strangers when he could not save his own wife? Everything was a lie. The beautifulness of the nature around him was nothing more than an illusion._

 _He could not forget the day she had left for Bolingbroke. It was so vivid before his eyes that it could have happened only yesterday. He remembered very little of the aftermath of her death, but the day she left continued to haunt him. He had not agreed with her decision to go and meet her Aunt in Bolingbroke. He did not think it was safe for her to travel so far on the reference of a single letter from a lawyer._

 _"_ _Where were they when you were at the orphanage?" he had asked. "If he is your father's brother why did he not bother to come during all these years?"_

 _But she had not listened to him. She had made up her mind to go. She had said she wanted to grab the chance of having a family that she never had. And he could not stop her._

 _He took a sharp intake of breath. She was stubborn enough not to listen to him. She had dropped James off at Green Gables and had booked a compartment in the evening train before telling him that she was going. But he could have stopped her at the station or he could have gone with her. But he had not even bothered to say goodbye._

 _He had let go of the chance to kiss her one last time, to tell her to be safe. He could have listened to her animated chatters and could have smelled her beautiful hair. They had abstained themselves from having another child due to his failing practice after James's birth. He would have taken the risk if he knew he wouldn't be able to touch her intimately ever again. Only if he knew he would never see the star-like eyes dancing under the moonlight, blissful expressions spreading across her features! He could have told her that he loved her one last time._

 _Gilbert Blythe could have done a lot of things. But he had not. And it was all that mattered._

Author's Note

Thank you for the reviews, lovely people! I love to hear what you think and also enjoy your theories about the future plot. I am sorry for being such a slow updater- I would try my best to be more prompt about my updates. I have written this chapter after fighting through a severe writer's block so I really hope you guys would think it is good!

Don't forget to leave a review! Reading the reviews makes my day. :)

Love,

Ashwini


	5. Chapter 5

Labyrinthine- Chapter Five

 _One girl whom I once loved, is missing, is lost._

 _Simple, yet beautiful. With fierce eyes ethereal._

 _She is missing, she is lost._

 _Never an angel, she was a wrath._

 _Like a hurricane-_

Winona paused, her pen going still into her hands. She remembered no more words of that song, she realized with a pang. She clenched her fists trying to refrain herself from finishing it with her own words.

 _Don't go down that road._ She scolded herself, fearing the poetry raging inside of her as much as she had feared that song.

Her eyes moved along the lines she had just etched onto the frail pages of her old journal, still in disbelief from what had happened the day before. She flinched as the events of that evening came crashing down to her all of a sudden, leaving her breathless. It wasn't that she couldn't have handled it otherwise, but she was so _unprepared._ If she had known he would be visiting Captain Jim at that time, if she only knew he had promised he would _sing_ for him, she would have found a way to deal with it. She would have told Gilbert the truth or perhaps she would've said she wasn't feeling well, which she wasn't as a matter of fact. But he had caught her off guard when he had strolled up from the shore to the lighthouse where she stood chatting lightly with Captain Jim and Gilbert by a crackling fire.

She had never known he could sing so well. She had only heard him humming a tune once in a while and that too years ago. Also his writing seemed to have improved a million times than when he was sixteen. It was almost as if she hardly knew him! She wondered just what he had gone through during all those years they had spent apart. And where he had disappeared during the past one year they after their brief encounter, only to return to Four Winds again? With a shudder she remembered just how thin and sickly he had looked that evening. His hair was cut and there was a wound on his neck bandaged unprofessionally. Was he even eating? Had he tried to harm himself? She shuddered at the memory of his voice as well. A deep pain reflected from it, a hint of truthfulness that she had never witnessed before.

 _Why do you come back to the things you leave behind, Alex?_ She thought remorsefully. Whenever she tried to pick up the pieces, he always seemed to reappear, only to crash her world down once again. She was tired of it. She wished he had never returned to Four Winds at that time. She would have worked to earn enough to survive and Gilbert would have been free to grieve and then perhaps marry someone else. Someone he loved.

The night that had changed everything came to her with a painful jolt. Much to her displeasure, she had to admit that it wasn't entirely Alex's fault that he had left at that time. The circumstances were so twisted that it was bound to happen. She remembered it clearly- the pain, the tears, Gilbert's sobs and how he had-

She jumped into her seat at the sudden disturbance, looking around frantically.

 _It's just a knock on the door._ She thought with a relief.

Wondering how Gilbert had arrived so early from the delivery up at the fishing village, she opened the door to reveal a grim and confused Leslie Moore standing on her doorstep.

Winona had to force herself to suppress giving a squeal of surprise.

"Leslie! Why, I never realized you were back!" she exclaimed, the thoughts that had occupied her mind moments ago slipping away at the surprise of seeing her childhood friend after so long. Through the astonishment she couldn't help but wonder why she had chosen to visit so late into the night, almost an hour before bedtime.

Leslie chose not to reply to Winona's question, but silently let herself into the house. Winona glanced at her as she passed and nodded in satisfaction. She had been worried to death about Leslie for the last few days. She had chosen not to write a single letter to her or Gilbert or even Miss Cornelia for that matter. Gilbert had only talked to Dick- or should she say George- Moore's doctor from Montreal on the phone who had assured that Leslie was still in a shock but considerably stable. It had soothed her to some extent, but it wasn't very often that Leslie chose not to speak with her and it unsettled her greatly.

She _looked_ normal to begin with; wearing a flattering crimson dress and had her hair twisted tightly into an enormous golden bun. There was some colour into her cheeks as she took her usual place on the sofa before the fireplace. Winona settled herself next to her friend impatiently.

"Are you alright?" she asked carefully, her voice tinted with worry. Leslie looked at her rather blankly and shook her head.

"I am a lot of things right now, Winona." She muttered, her voice barely audible. "But alright isn't one of them."

"How do you feel?"

"Tired." She stated, looking rather dazed. "I've been racking my brains over what has happened for the past few weeks and it is very tiring to think of the future. I don't know if I even believe in the future yet."

Winona's lips twisted into a smile.

"You have to. Not many people get a new beginning, Leslie."

Leslie nodded in agreement.

"Perhaps I will learn to believe again." She shrugged. "But right now I would really appreciate it if I could think of something else. I am in such a daze that I never realized just how late it was until I reached here."

"What do you want to talk about?" she asked stiffly. The picture of a handsome gentleman swam before her eyes as she looked at Leslie; his eyes pained and gait stiff as he boarded the train. Much to her surprise, Leslie held out an envelope before her.

"I went to collect my mail from the post office today and they gave me this." She gestured at the letter. "Do you remember the lady who boarded with me last fall? Julia Shirley? This is from her."

"How nice of her to write to you." Winona commented, still not catching why Leslie was telling this to her. But she did remember the poor old lady who had haunted every corner of Four Winds for two months looking for her only son.

"Well, she had never done so previously." Leslie shrugged. "I was rather surprised to find this and it was the first one I opened. I thought perhaps she had found her son in the end or that she wished to return. But it surprised me to no extent that she wrote to me asking for Gilbert."

Winona's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"She asked you about Gilbert? Whatever for?"

Leslie hesitated slightly before speaking.

"Well she says she has been trying to locate him for a year and found out only now that he lived here in Four Winds. She did not know precisely where and hence wrote to me."

"Whatever on earth does she want from him?" Winona asked surprised. Leslie looked at her cautiously.

"She has written that she needs to discuss a very important matter with him regarding his wife- first wife I should say- and has asked me to request him that he contacts her at once if I know him well enough to do so."

Winona took that more calmly than she had thought she could. She could not figure out what that woman knew about Anne Blythe, but she herself knew very little about Gilbert's long lost love to answer that. But she knew one thing for certain- Gilbert was not ready to discuss her yet. She had learnt it long ago, very bitterly so. She gulped at the thought of having to talk about this to him again.

Her thoughts turned to that fateful night once again. The inauspicious whistling of the winds; the look on Gilbert's face, the things that he had told her, she suddenly realized everything.

Julia Shirley. Julia Shirley. Now she knew why the name had sounded familiar.

* * *

She peered into their room cautiously, fearing what she would witness. Gilbert did not like it when she saw him crying and would shut himself out for days after that. Much to her relief, he sat by the large window looking out and towards the silver moon, the letter now crumpled by his hands into a fibrous ball. Though he looked slightly distressed, there was no hint of tears into his hazel eyes. She walked in slowly, trying to sense whether he wanted her to leave. But when he looked up at her, his eyes were still.

"Do you suppose I should go?" he asked hoarsely.

Winona swallowed before speaking.

"I could tell you if I knew what that woman wants."

"Property." He replied blankly. "Her uncle left her some property when he died. That was what the woman wrote her for in the beginning. I don't want any of it, but the woman wouldn't stop the nagging. I think I should go and settle it once and for all."

"Could you do it alone?" she asked. "I am so sorry I couldn't come with you."

"I'll have to." he said exasperatedly. "It's a closure, Winona. I can feel it. It might be the thing that would mark a new beginning for me."

He looked at her with a peculiar look in his eyes. Her heart raced as she processed what he meant by that, but she couldn't figure out whether he spoke out of obligation or affection.

"Perhaps."

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

 _Owen Ford climbed the steps that led to Julia Shirley's small yellow house with a heavy heart, wondering how he was going to face her. It made him flinch to think what delicacies she must have cooked for her son; how much she might have looked forward to that particular day. She had trusted Owen's words wholeheartedly and he felt as if he had betrayed her. It wasn't entirely his fault to be honest- he had simply made the mistake of trusting his childhood friend._

 _He had thought John_ would _come home this time but he had not arrived at the train station in Toronto as promised. Owen couldn't figure out what he was up to. There was no clue about his location whatsoever, yet his letters reached his mother mysteriously out of nowhere. How can a person disappear completely from this earth and still manage to post letters? He had also received one the day before he left for Bolingbroke, saying that he had to tend to some unfinished business and would go later by himself._

 _With slight hesitation he knocked on the large wooden door which was opened eagerly in a swift motion by a riveted Mrs. Shirley. He stared guiltily at his shoes as her bright eyes scanned behind him for her son and fell slightly as she noticed his absence._

 _"Where is he?" she asked fearfully._

 _Owen pursed his lips and dared to look into her eyes._

 _"I am dreadfully sorry, Mrs. Shirley." He apologized._

 _"But you said he wrote to you." she said sternly. "You said he was in Toronto and that he would come back with you."_

 _Owen opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again as an afterthought. He did not wish to displease her anymore than she already was. Perhaps he shouldn't have let her know John was coming until he had boarded the train with him. He made a mental note of doing precisely that next time._

 _"He said he would come later." He spluttered. "Has some unfinished business he said."_

 _"Unfinished business?" she sneered bitterly. "What on earth can be more important than his father's death? Tell me, Owen!"_

 _"He doesn't know about Mr. Shirley." He said, suddenly defendant of his friend."There is no way to tell him- it's as if he has disappeared. I travel a lot for work and I have never come across him once. And I should have at least heard of him."_

 _Mrs. Shirley looked at him pointedly, but then her gaze softened._

 _"His letters are always descriptive, but he never mentions the place." She muttered, mostly to herself. "Is there anything else that you can do, Owen?"_

 _Owen looked around uncomfortably, noticing that she had made him stand in the doorstep, never asking to come in. He mused what grief does to a person and his heart went out to the mother._

 _"I'll do whatever I can, Mrs. Shirley." He said sincerely. "You might as well have my word."_

* * *

Hello, folks! Thank you for the continued support for my story! :D

First things first- I have rewritten the entire first chapter of this story and I would advise you all to go have a look at it once again. Though there are no major changes, I have inserted a flashback there as well from the time of Anne's supposed death and have tried to make the other parts a little better than they were. Let me know what you think of that as well. :)

Owen Ford has officially entered! You will find out soon that he plays an important part here. His connection with Aunt Julia and her son would provide the necessary information about this long lost Uncle and Aunt that Anne never knew of. A lot of you guys have been wondering about the same so I decided to introduce Owen a bit earlier than I originally intended to through this flashback. Also writing the next few chapters is going to be pretty exciting for me- with Gilbert travelling to Bolingbroke and finding out about Anne and Anne finding out about Winona in return. Please keep reading and reviewing! It motivates me like nothing else. :) Lastly, only the idea belongs to me. Otherwise everything else belongs to L. .

Love,

Ashwini


	6. Chapter 6

Labyrinthine Chapter Six

Gilbert leaned his head against the wall as the train rattled away from the locales of Four Winds through the inky darkness of the night, his limbs sore and head hurting. He had had to cancel his reservations for the morning train due to an emergency that Parker needed him for. After six hours of battling to save a badly burned baby he had advised Parker to take her to Montreal. As he saw the exhausted doctor hurrying around to make arrangements, Gilbert had almost offered that he would stay, but had stopped himself from doing so. He had already telegrammed Mrs. Shirley to inform her that he was to board the evening train as a change of plans and Parker was more than capable for handling the situation anyway.

There was no point in putting this visit off- he would have to face this once and for all. He was getting tired of running away constantly- it was perhaps time to face everything that tormented him. There was no escape from the past; he had learnt that much now.

The evening train was mostly empty, only a few people scattered across its dimly lit compartments, nearly all of them asleep. For the first time in a long time, he found himself relaxing in his seat as the movement of the train rocked him methodically. The silence in his surrounding was strangely satisfying. There it was- he had not experienced such stillness and calmness for a very long time, _year_ s to be precise. The past few years had been more eventful that he could handle, leaving no chance to be left with his own thoughts. He _had_ done several long journeys regularly while he was practicing in Avonlea he remembered, covering all medical emergencies he could reach. But they had been far from relaxing, always marred by the worries of money or not finding work…

 _No, no, don't think about that._ He tried to keep his thoughts from touching the dangerous territory that was his old life. Those thoughts always lead to her. he didn't think he could handle a trip down the memory lane especially when he was heading to Bolingbroke where he would probably have to speak about her. He groaned internally at that thought and ran a hand absently through his hair. He hardly found himself saying her name aloud. How was he going to discuss legal matters regarding her? He believed the execution of Mr. Shirley's will must have gotten messy after the person he had given some of his money to have died…

 _Distract yourself. Find something else you can think about._

He tried to focus on the medicines he had planned to pick up from Nova Scotia. He attempted to think of other ways he could suggest to Mrs. Ottoman to provide some comfort to her arthritis. He thought of picking up something for James from Bolingbroke. He had been devastated to know that his father was going on a train, fearing that he would also disappear just as his mother had…

Soon his thoughts began to trace the circuitous route and he let out an exasperated sigh. He could only think of her, there was nothing useful in his mind. He fought the lump forming in his throat with clenched teeth, trying to blink back the tears. He usually managed to stay away from any unwanted thoughts of her for some time when he was treating patients or playing with James, but even when he wasn't thinking of her, she was always _there._

He looked at James's red curls bouncing on his head as he jumped and thought of the thick rope-like braid that had graced her back. He found himself thinking just how much she would have liked the little house he had rented or the brook that ran by its side. He often thought she would have loved to hear the stories of the sea from Captain Jim and would have thought the story of Lost Margaret utterly romantic yet sad. He sometimes heard the shuffling from his kitchen and it caught his breath until a curious Winona would poke her head out from there. He found traces of her wherever he went- in the waves of the ocean, in the fluttering wings of butterflies, in every room of his house, in every fiber of his being.

He had tried to escape her for so long. But how do you run from something that lies within you?

He looked out of the window into the dark, his hazel eyes glistening. Going to Bolingbroke was only going to intensify the emotional burden he seemed to carry everywhere. Burden- there was no better word to describe what he felt. He supposed he never had enough time to process her death and grieve over it. He had had to put all his feelings in a box the very next day for James's sake, Marilla's sake. The events had taken place with a surprising pace, never giving him any leisure nor peace to deal with his pain. Uncle Dave's death, the shifting, setting up the new practice and then his marriage with Winona… All of it had happened _too soon._

He could picture their old blue house in the outskirts of the town clearly at that moment- nestled into the woods cozily away from the prying eyes of crowd. No one had lived there for years and the repairing had cost him quite a fortune. The roof needed some serious mending, the landings were in a terrible state and the enamel of the furniture was peeling off. The kitchen of that house was so tiny that both Gilbert and she could hardly fit in it at once. Sure, it was imperfect- but it was _theirs._ They had learnt to look past the inconveniences and had dealt with their financial worries- at least until the wretched letter had arrived. He _knew_ that the letter itself was very much innocent, but he liked to think of it as something that had changed his fate. He could clearly picture that summer afternoon when she- _Anne-_ had casually placed that small envelope before him as they sat at their dining table while he had rushed in for a hurried bite of supper.

It was an official letter from a lawyer from somewhere in Nova Scotia, informing Anne that her paternal uncle Mr. David Shirley had left some of his money for his long lost niece through his will. She had sworn she had never heard of any Uncle of hers and had wondered if she should write back.

 _"No one ever told me if my father had any siblings." She had said, her face puzzled. "I always assumed he had none- otherwise I wouldn't have been sent to the orphanage. They only took those who had no one."_

He had felt that something wasn't right. It was rather doubtful that her father had a brother. If he was alive and knew that his niece was somewhere why didn't he bother to find her before he died? Also the letter never specified just how much he had left and there was no paperwork- not even a copy of the said will as well. It was all clearly suspicious and he had warned her about it. But when he returned from his rounds one night in the next week, she had already packed her suitcase.

" _You're going?" he had exclaimed, infuriated. "But Anne, I told you it didn't feel right and you agreed!"_

 _There was a certain sparkle in her grey orbs that hinted that she intended to argue._

 _"I did. But then I wrote back to them and my Aunt wrote this wonderful letter for me-"_

 _"Your Aunt!"_

 _"Yes- his wife wrote to me. I got the letter this morning." She held out another white envelope. "It's lovely, Gilbert- it explains a lot. She says my Uncle fought with his brother after their parents' death and left on a ship. She tells me he always liked sailing and met her on a harbor only to fall in love and get married. He never came back to Nova Scotia until one year ago and he only found out then that my parents were dead and I was left at the orphanage. It hurt him so much that he decided to hunt me down and give me a share of his property."_

 _He had eyed her exasperatedly as she narrated the story profusely and took a shaky breath._

 _"But Anne there is no need to go right away." He had pointed. "You could've told me first, I would've come with you."_

 _"Don't take it in the wrong way, Gilbert." She had pleaded, clutching on his hand. "But I know you'll never have enough time. I can see how much you work for us and it'd be great if we tend to this as soon as feasible. If this letter is speaking the truth, there is a chance that it would put an end to all of our worries."_

 _He had paused dead at her words- each one piercing him until he bled. He understood it all- it became clear why she was ready to trust such a suspicious letter and why she was being so impatient. He had suspected it before, but had always tried to tell himself it couldn't be true. Surely his Anne wouldn't think like that._

 _"Is this about the money?" he had whispered in a hoarse voice._

 _He had hoped till that moment that she would say otherwise; that she would refuse. But he read her eyes like an open book that night and it was evident that it was precisely what the impatience was about. Perhaps not the money itself, but all the things the lack of it had denied them._

 _"I want another baby." She had murmured boldly, lifting her eyes to his shocked face. "I understand why we're refraining ourselves, Gilbert, but I do! I always dreamt of a big family. I still do- especially after James's birth. I need to be a mother again. And you wouldn't do it unless we are stable financially."_

 _He could never describe in words how hurt he had been. Anne was saying everything he had ever feared. That he had failed her; that he had seized one of her dreams from her, that he had made her settle for less. He didn't know for how long he stared into her pale face, but at one point he had turned and walked out of the room without uttering a word._

 _"Gilbert, wait! Listen to me-"she had pleaded her voice breaking._

 _And then he had slammed the bedroom door shut._

He pulled out his handkerchief from the pocket of his trousers and wiped his eyes hurriedly. He would reach Bolingbroke in the morning and did not want any traces on his face that he had cried. He managed to push the memories away once again and rested his head against the back of his seat. He stared at the ceiling until he felt his eyes beginning to close warily and willingly succumbed to sleep when it tried to take over, hoping he would manage to escape her at din his dreams.

* * *

When he stepped down from the train and onto the platform next morning, he felt unexpectedly light. The day was sunny and the large station abuzz with people hurrying in and out of the train while horses and buggies waited patiently for their passengers. The normalcy of the setting made his troubled mind less vulnerable and he felt he could pretend to be okay. His eyes scanned the platform quickly, wondering if his telegram had reached the Shirleys in time. He hoped it had- he knew close to nothing about that place. But he had had no word as to who was to pick him up.

"Doctor Blythe?"

He turned curiously at the sound of his name and almost bumped into a tall, lanky gentleman with wide rimmed spectacles. He wore a smart brown suit and clutched a doctor's suitcase in one hand.

"I am Doctor Walter Brown." The man held out his free hand which Gilbert shook. "Mrs. Shirley's doctor. She found it difficult to get someone to pick you up on such a short notice, so I offered her some help."

"Thank you, Doctor Brown." Gilbert said courteously. "I hope it wasn't too much trouble for you."

"Of course, not." Doctor Brown waved a hand in the air and led him to a buggy that stood nearby. "I am usually free at this time of the day, once I am finished with my morning rounds. Mr. Shirley was a dear friend so I happen to know the family very well. I have been there constantly since a couple of years, thanks to Mr. Shirley and then your wife."

Gilbert frowned at his words as Doctor Brown gave the horse a pat and climbed into the buggy. He followed him doubting that there had been a mistake.

"My wife?" he asked as he settled down beside him.

The Doctor looked curiously at him through his spectacles.

"I assume Julia hasn't told you much through her letter." He mused with a pointed glance at him. Gilbert blinked in confusion.

"I don't understand." He said. "I was informed that I contact her as soon as possible and I did. She invited me here so I came. It was supposed to be just that."

Doctor Brown raised an eyebrow.

"You mean to say that you know very little about exactly what she wants to talk about?"

"Indeed."

He gave Gilbert an amused expression and slapped the reins on the horse's back. Gilbert looked away from him as the buggy rolled out of the station to avoid his gaze. He could not imagine what Mrs. Shirley meant to tell him- it couldn't be anything but the property. But that thought did very little to explain the amused expression on Doctor Brown's face.

Gilbert managed to sit still throughout the twenty minute long journey, both men immersed in their own thoughts. Once they reached outside a small yellow house and the horses were tied safely, Doctor Brown looked at him kindly.

"It would be best if you wait here till I get back, Dr. Blythe." He said sincerely in a tone that Gilbert did not quite like. After a pat on his shoulder, he walked towards the house, leaving a stricken Gilbert behind. He waited patiently into the sun for a while but as time passed, he felt himself growing uneasy. What was going on? The letter never explained anything and now a strange doctor had come to pick him up at the station only to leave him waiting outside a random house. He scratched the back of his neck absently, wondering if he had made a mistake trusting that woman. He had never found her very trustworthy anyway. What was he thinking?

He shifted uneasily and pushed his hands into the pockets. As he looked around towards the surroundings, he felt as if someone was watching him and instinctively turned his head around and up at the house. There was a lone window on the landing that stared directly at him. He saw someone move swiftly after his glance fell there and froze to the ground. The window was covered partially by a dipping branch of the tree that flanked the house and it was far away- but he did not miss the flash of red against the dreary glass window.

A tall, pale woman with hair as red as-

He knew it was foolish of him to think that, but he moved towards the house as if in a trance. He _had_ seen someone looking out at him through that window, he was sure of it. And that someone had very red hair that resembled-

 _No._ he thought warily, pausing for a moment. _It couldn't be her. She is dead._

But he couldn't have mistaken the color of her hair anywhere, any time. The manner of moving swiftly away with a slight stumble… he swallowed hard. Was it just a trick of the memory? Had he begun to dream while awake? Did he really require an appointment with the psychiatrist Winona had suggested?

There was only one way to find out.

He quickened his pace as the front door drew near. It was slightly ajar and he could see Doctor Brown conversing rather arguing with a woman who could only be Mrs. Julia Shirley. As far as Gilbert knew, she had brown hair and she lived alone. Who was that girl? Was there a girl at all?

"He wouldn't be able to handle seeing her first. We need to tell-"

He moved into the house cautiously. The occupants paused and turned towards him with a stunned look. He had heard what Doctor Brown had spoken and his heart began to race wildly. He paused in the living room, wondering if either of them would stop him. But they didn't. His eyes moved across the room and he spotted a staircase just beside a door. He walked towards it absently, stopping for a moment at the bottom. Was it proper for him to intrude into a house like that? It wasn't. But then he heard shuffling from above and decided to proceed. He reached the landing within moments and looked impatiently around. Slowly he heard curious footsteps from a nearby room.

"Who is it?" said a fearful voice.

The sound shook him to the core. It was _hers-_ it was her voice! His eyes widened with fear as a pale, slender girl with enormous red hair walked onto the landing.

 _No._

Red hair, grey eyes, shapely nose dotted by tiny freckles.

 _No. it couldn't be her._

The same slender form with the delicacy of an iris. A look of deep affection reflecting from her gaze as her eyes found him.

He took a step back as he beheld the woman in front of him all at once. It was her! Very much like her at least. The entire year flashed before his eyes in a nanosecond as he stared into the frightened face of Anne Blythe. He tried to tell himself it was a dream and expected to wake up at any moment only to realize that he was still dozed off in the train.

But nothing seemed to shake him to senses. Nothing made him float away from the vision. The reality clung to him and gripped him from within. Was she only a specter? A spirit or a ghost? She took a step forward to touch him lightly on the arm and the reality hit him harder than he had expected.

He could touch her. He could feel the warmth of her hand on his.

 _She was real._

He saw Anne smile at him gently and expected to feel an irrepressible joy spread through him.

But instead, in the first time in his still young life twenty nine, Gilbert Blythe fainted.

* * *

Owen Ford held his finished manuscript triumphantly as he knocked on the front door of his publisher. He was supposed to board the train in less than two hours and wanted to get the responsibility off his chest before he left for good. He was quite satisfied with the way his new novel had turned out and was set to begin a brand new chapter in the book that was his own life. Miss Cornelia had given him the best news that he had received in a while and he simply couldn't wait to go back to the enchanted land of Four Winds to pursue the angelic girl who had haunted him for months straight. He impatiently knocked once again and an annoyed Rupert Spencer opened the door frowning.

"Give this old fellow some time to open the door, Ford." He scolded as he let Owen in.

Owen chuckled at this.

"Fifty four is hardly considered as an old age, Rupert." He remarked as he took a place at the very end of the couch. The living room was as messy as it always was and every inch of space seemed to be filled with papers and books and manuscripts. Rupert had to shove a bunch of the papers away to find enough space to fit his enormous body beside Owen.

"It should be. Especially to those misfortunate enough to be diagnosed with arthritis." He groaned, rubbing his knees as he flopped down ungracefully on the couch. Rupert was a huge fellow with innumerable health issues which never seemed as serious as he made them out to be. Owen rolled his eyes at the strained look on his face.

"I have the manuscript ready, Rupert." He waved it in the air like a trophy and the publisher took it with disbelief. He eyed Owen curiously and raised an eyebrow.

"Any head about John Shirley?" Owen inquired.

"It has been confirmed that he used to perform for tourists in those luxurious ships. He worked on one two years ago in that favorite harbor of yours." He said nonchalantly.

"You mean Four Winds?"

"Precisely." Rupert nodded in agreement. "Perhaps that is why his mother went there last year. I remember you telling me that."

Owen sighed. He was worried about John, but he had to accept that there was no progress at all. How long was he going to search for him?

Meanwhile Rupert had flipped through the pages of his manuscript quickly and was now glaring at him with a suspicious look on his prematurely lined face.

"It is splendid that you are done with this, Ford," he said, "and I am sure it is good enough to publish, but I suspect that this isn't the reason behind that sparkle in your eyes."

Owen blinked consciously.

"There's no sparkle in my eyes, Rupert. I am just very happy with the book."

Rupert smirked at the writer's flushed cheeks.

"I guess I'll find out once I read this." He tapped the manuscript and placed it on the pile of books on the tea table. "You always seem to incorporate real life into these stories. You said this is a biography?"

Owen shrugged.

"Sort of- but not exactly. It is hugely inspired from an old sailor that I met in Four Winds. He keeps the lighthouse there and has some excellent stories about the sea. Quite a fellow, I tell you!" he hesitated. "But I have made a fair amount of changes."

Rupert chuckled and shook his head.

"Don't tell me it's about unrequited love again!"

Owen looked at him sharply.

"I didn't add that part!" he protested. "It is as real as it can get. He told me about the love of his life- a girl he lost at quite a young age."

"And you understood his pain." Rupert said pointedly and Owen felt his cheeks heat.

"I did." he said quietly.

Rupert pursed his lips.

"When are you going to get over her?" he asked in a concerned tone. "It does give a realistic edge to your writing, but it's been long enough now. Don't you think you need to start over?"

Though Owen looked sincere, there was a small smile playing on his lips.

"I feel that way too." He nodded. "It's time, Rupert. And that is precisely why I'm leaving for Four Winds."

"You are going back?" he asked, surprised.

Owen felt his heart flutter as he nodded in agreement.

"She is finally free to go with me."

"What do you mean that she is _free?_ " he queried curiously. Owen smiled as he stood up to leave.

"My love life is as complicated as a novel." He commented. "I never told you this, but my story with Leslie begins with her being married to the wrong person."

He chuckled at the puzzled look on Rupert's face and put his hat and coat back on.

"I'll tell you the story when I get the time, Spencer." He retorted. "But right now it's time for a new beginning."

Author's Note-

Thank you for the continued support to my story! I hope the mystery isn't getting out of hand and that you guys are catching up to what is happening. To clear out any confusion, I decided to write up a short synopsis of everything that I have revealed till this chapter.

Here is what we know so far-

Julia Shirley's lawyer wrote to Anne about the money that David Shirley had left for her in his will. Julia has claimed that David is Walter Shirley's brother who left his hometown to be a sailor when he was young. When he returned he found out that his brother has died and his niece was sent to an orphanage. As an apology he left some of his money for Anne in his will. Anne decided to leave to meet the lawyer and Julia for reasons explained in this chapter. While on her way, the train compartment she boarded caught fire. Anne jumped from the train to save herself and ended up being badly injured because of that. The village people found her lying somewhere along the rail and took her to Doctor Brown. Doctor Brown found a handkerchief in her pocket with her name on it and guessed that she must be related to Julia Shirley.

Also we learnt that Winona had a teenage love affair with Alex who left her to pursue his literary ambitions only to return years later. Why he left her again and why Gilbert had to marry Winona and who is Nora's father out of the two would be revealed very soon, so keep reading till then.!

I hope this helped!

The chapters after this are going to be rather eventful. I hope you guys are enjoying this story. Do let me know your thoughts through your reviews. Nothing makes me happier than a kind review.

Thank you once again for keeping up with the story! I really appreciate it. keep reading.

Love,

Ashwini


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

"Anne is alive."

Gilbert gripped the sheets tightly in his fist, teeth clenched and brow furrowed. The image of Anne standing inches away from him on the landing flashed in his mind and made him flinch. He had been convinced that it was only a terribly realistic nightmare and nothing more. He had thought perhaps his wishful thinking had taken a sinister form or that he had been so vulnerable that he had started seeing things. He had managed to soothe his raging mind. Yet there was Dr Brown- all sincere and grave, trying to tell him once again that Anne was alive.

His first instinct was to flee- to board a train and go back to Four Winds as soon as possible.

"She is alive?" he managed to say through quivering lips. "No, Dr Brown- that- can't be true."

Dr Brown eyed him expectantly from the chair beside the small bed.

"But it is true." He clasped his hands together and said pointedly. "Anne has been living here with Julia for a year now." He waved his hand towards Mrs. Shirley who stood by the door like a statue. "In fact that was why she wrote to your neighbor Mrs. Moore. She has been trying to locate you for months."

Gilbert blinked at him, his mind torn between his wish to believe and the fear of having his hopes slashed once again.

"I don't believe you." he said bitterly. He couldn't dare to hope again for sure, but then why would Dr Brown play such a cruel game with him?

Dr Brown let out a long sigh.

"Look, Gilbert, I know this is hard." he said exasperatedly. "Seeing her like that- I am surprised you didn't have a heart attack. But it's time you believe what I say. I don't mean to brag, but I was the one who saved Anne's life. I have seen her recover for months. She isn't dead."

He stared at him for a long time and then swallowed.

"How?" he said hoarsely.

Dr Brown leaned back into his chair and folded his hands thoughtfully.

"You are aware of the train accident that took place." He spoke calmly. "From what I have heard- Anne jumped from the train to save herself from the fire and landed somewhere near the rails at the outskirts of Bolingbroke- a little less than two miles from here. Some men who were returning to the town from a house construction spotted her lying there covered in blood." He paused to look at Gilbert's shadowed face before continuing. "I don't live far away from where they found her. They immediately came to me and I was the one who escorted her to my house in the very same buggy that you were just seated in. I won't lie to you, Gilbert- it was a miracle that she survived. She has endured a long recovery, but now I assure you she is almost as healthy as we are. I have been treating her for a year now."

Colour drained from Gilbert's face as he heard the story. He felt strangely numb- should he believe or should he not?

"I met with the police." He murmured in a husky voice. "They said her- her body was found and she was badly burned. I even identified her ring and her luggage."

Doctor Brown nodded gravely.

"I am well aware of the fact." His tone was bitter. "I went straight to the police when I found out that you have believed Anne to be dead for so long and had a conversation with Officer Watson who happens to be my patient. It is saddening that they have mistaken some other lady for Anne whose family may not have any idea as to what happened to her. He said he would do his best to find out who she was, but these things take time. They have no clue how such an unfortunate error happened."

"Was she burned?" he asked eagerly.

"Not a bit," the doctor said with a wry smile. "But she was in grave danger nonetheless. Jumped from a train- I was surprised I found her alive! She had lost plenty of blood and her collarbone was fractured. If I had reached her an hour later, the lie that you have been living would have been the truth."

Gilbert's face was aghast. He realized that what he was hearing was indeed the truth. It still felt like a blow, but he took it better this time.

"Then why didn't she come back? Why no one ever told us?"

"There are a lot of pieces missing in this puzzle, Dr Blythe." he muttered. "Anne couldn't travel to Avonlea, so Julia kept writing to you. But you never seemed to answer."

"That's not possible."

"As I said, it's all a big mystery still." He raised his hands exasperatedly and stretched. "But I hope you believe me now."

He identified no emotion- neither happiness nor disbelief. Perhaps he wouldn't be able to fully believe him unless-

"Can I see her?" he asked slowly, preparing himself for coming face to face with her this time. He couldn't- he wouldn't faint again- he told himself that firmly and sat up straighter. Dr Brown turned to gesture at Mrs. Shirley who nodded and left the room swiftly. Gilbert caught his breath as he realized that Anne might walk through that door any moment.

"Are you sure you can handle this?" Doctor Brown asked and his brow rose skeptically.

Gilbert nodded. With a pounding heart he saw Dr Brown leave the chair with a sympathetic look in his deep dark eyes.

"I think the two of you would be better left alone." He said smoothly. "But if you need anything or if you faint once again, I'll be in the living room."

* * *

He didn't know for how long he stared at her as if she were a ghost. He simply sat there, leaning against the headboard and continued to be amazed at the sight of her perched in a chair so close to him. Minutes later or hours later, she smiled at the incredulous look on his face and gently grasped his cool hand with her slender one.

"Gilbert, say something."

He closed his eyes savoring the sound of his name on her lips and the warmth of her hand entwined with his. He couldn't believe it wasn't a terribly lifelike dream. Perhaps the most realistic and beautiful one that he had had since she died.

 _Even if this isn't real, I am glad she is alive._

He slowly lifted his eyelids and allowed himself to look at her. She was staring at him patiently as she sat in the chair, her face strained and body tout. He noticed her hair was braided but a few stray strands fell along the sides of her face and reached out slowly to brush them away with a touch as light as a feather. She leaned into his hand ever so slightly and he couldn't help but let his fingers linger on her smooth skin to trace the contours of her beautiful face, enjoying the blush that graced her cheeks.

"Are you real?" he whispered, almost fearfully.

Instead of answering she bent forward to leave the chair and brushed his lips with her own, her kiss so tentative that he felt her fearing that he would lose his consciousness once again. With a small smile forming on his lips, he allowed himself to pull her closer by the waist and kissed her deeply, agonizingly. She responded almost immediately, moving her lips with maddening slowness. The feel of her breath, the familiar lily of the valley scent of her hair- it was pure bliss. He let himself lose into the passionate moment, forgetting the existence of everything that surrounded them.

As their kisses became more heated, he prayed for every inch of self control that he had and gently pulled himself away from her, regretfully so. She also seemed to regain her composure as she moved away from him, standing near the bed, breathless.

Breathing heavily, he sat up properly and beckoned her closer. She gently moved to settle beside him on the bed and rested her head on his shoulder. He kissed her beloved red head lightly and grasped her hand tightly in his with a sigh of content.

 _She was real._

They stayed that way for a long time. He would have savored her quiet presence for hours, but there were many things that needed to be spoken, many questions remained unanswered. He didn't know where to begin.

"I don't know what to say, Anne-girl." He said in defeat.

She looked at him with a smile. Her eyes showed that she understood him.

"Then don't."

He nodded and sat there silently, caressing her long, delicate fingers till she broke the silence.

"How is James?"

"He's alright." He said reassuringly, sensing the longing in her voice. His heart fluttered to think what James would do when he would know his long lost mother had returned.

"Does he miss me?" she asked, her question tinted with fear.

He set his jaw and thought the question over.

"He asks about you sometimes." He answered. "He knew you went on a train and he has assumed that you just haven't returned yet." He looked at her gently. "We didn't think he was old enough to understand death. A part of me wanted to shield him from it."

"I am glad you did that." She said faintly.

"I know."

"When did you move to Four Winds?" she continued, sensing his inability to comprehend yet.

"After one month of the accident." He replied. "Uncle Dave died, Anne. And he always wanted me to take over his practice- in fact it was his dying wish. I couldn't refuse Aunt Katherine, I just had to go."

"It must have been difficult for you." she mused. "Setting up your new practice and looking after James at the same time."

"Well, I took Marilla with me." he shrugged, planting a tender kiss on her palm.

"But Diana said she returned soon." Anne pressed forward.

He looked at her nonchalantly.

"Yes, she returned once I-"

He paused midsentence, his words frozen on his lips. _Winona._ How could he forget about her? That he had married? He pressed his quivering lips together.

 _What am I going to do?_

"She- she returned once we got settled over there." He finished hastily, hoping she wouldn't notice the stammering. Anne seemed to blame it to his state of shock and only gave a brief nod.

"When are we leaving for Four Winds?" she queried. "I've been dying to see my little Jem for so long."

Gilbert's heart sank in his chest. How was he going to tell her? He felt like he had betrayed her; that he had cheated, even if he had believed her to be dead. What kind of husband marries another woman after four months of his first wife's death?

 _You married her because you had to, not because you wanted to._

But he _had_ married her nonetheless. And that was the only thing that mattered. He couldn't tell Anne why he had taken the decision- not without talking to Winona first.

And for that to happen, he had to take Anne to Four Winds. He flinched at the thought of having Anne, Winona and James in the same house.

 _Would she be able to bear that James calls Winona Mama now? What would she think of Nora?_

He could never abandon Nora, he knew that for sure. And he couldn't do that to Winona either. They had nowhere else to be and it was all his fault _._ He knew he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he ever decided to leave them.

 _Then are you going to do that to Anne?_

 _You can't do that either. You love her._

He reluctantly looked into her expectant eyes, trying to hide the guilt that he felt.

"Perhaps in two or three days." he said hoarsely.

 _Not until I am ready._

* * *

 _ **Flashback**_

 _The summer had come close to an end and the winds that blew across the sea were getting colder as each day passed. Winona Smith wasn't ready for the winter yet. Or perhaps it wasn't the season that bothered her, but the memories it brought with its chilling breezes and tiny snowflakes._

 _She gave an inadvertent sigh at the thought and turned her head to look at the grave face of Dr Gilbert Blythe who walked briskly beside her, his brow furrowed and hands deep into his pockets. Quietly, she observed that he did not seem to have noticed the slight coolness of the winds or the flowers that bloomed along the road they walked on. As she thought about that, she realized that she had not seen the doctor show any spark of interest about anything during the one month for which she had worked for him._

 _She wondered what was wrong with him._

 _Well, she had heard plenty of stories about the young brooding doctor who had arrived to the seaside town with a two year old son and an old woman named Miss Cuthbert who certainly wasn't his mother. He had come suddenly after Dr Dave's death and no one seemed to know anything about him apart from that he was the old doctor's nephew. They said his wife had died while giving birth to his son and some swore she had died of pneumonia a month ago, but no one knew for sure and Mrs. Doctor Dave refused to confirm._

 _"_ _Are we done for the day, Dr Blythe?" she asked eagerly as they reached the bend that lead to her little house near the woods._

 _Dr Blythe, who had been staring at the flickering light at the point, turned to look at her face slightly._

 _"_ _I believe so, Miss Smith." He replied distantly._

 _"_ _Then may I go home?" she questioned. The sun had already set and she felt ready for warm dinner and bed after a long delivery and tending to seven children who had chicken pox. Gilbert glanced towards her drooping eyes and she saw a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth._

 _"_ _Of course you can." He assured her sheepishly. "I know it's too much work sometimes. I'm sorry if I've made you work more than I should have."_

 _She waved a hand nonchalantly in the air._

 _"_ _I like it." she said solemnly and hesitated before speaking. "I lost my mother to a disease last Christmas. It feels satisfying to be doing this in the light of that."_

 _Dr Blythe gave a brief nod._

 _"_ _I understand."_

 _"_ _Did your wife die of a sickness too?" she asked before she could stop herself._

 _She saw him flinch at the mention of her but he chose to remain silent. He turned his gaze down to stare at his shoes and shook his head in decline. She folded her lips, realizing how private that question was. It wasn't professional of her._

 _"_ _I'm sorry, Dr Blythe." She said nervously. "I shouldn't have asked that."_

 _He looked at her with effort and sighed._

 _"_ _It's not your fault." he said, his voice heavy. "People are going to ask me that question sooner or later and I'll have to answer it." He took a deep breath. "It was a train accident."_

 _Her eyebrows shot up at his answer._

 _"_ _A train accident!" she exclaimed. "Well that's- exceptional."_

 _He ran a hand through his hair and shrugged._

 _"_ _So was she." He muttered so low that she almost didn't hear him._

It seems like he really loved her. _She thought._ My father didn't even look at my mother's corpse properly. _She thought with a pang._

 _"_ _I'll take your leave, Miss Smith." He muttered and tipped his hat at her. "We have a very interesting case to examine tomorrow- be at the clinic by eight. Dr Allen needs some advice regarding a man with a mysterious wound."_

 _She nodded._

 _"_ _I'll see you tomorrow, Dr Blythe." She turned to leave, but paused when she saw him turn off the road and towards the woods._

 _"_ _Dr Blythe?"_

 _He turned around to look at her absently._

 _"_ _Yes?"_

 _"_ _You aren't going home?" she asked with concern, hoping she wasn't prying again. He blinked at her nervously and ran a hand through his hair._

 _"_ _I was hoping I could take a walk before I went home."_

 _She looked at the sky and the rising moon._

 _"_ _It's too late for that." She observed. "It's not safe."_

 _He chuckled, but there was bitterness in the sound that unsettled her to no extent._

 _"_ _I'll try my best to be safe, Miss Smith." He replied coolly. "Do not worry on my account."_

 _She nodded and threw a curious glance at him before leaving. She pondered over him as she walked down the road towards her house. If it was true that his wife had died recently, she felt he shouldn't be left alone for long and certainly not into the woods. She looked back at the direction of the spot where he had disappeared moments ago._

 _She knew it was dangerous for him to be alone while dealing with the death of a close person. She knew that all too well. How many days had she spent roaming around every corner of the town when her mother had died and she had found out about her father's affair? She told herself everyday that she had recovered, but the idea of being into the woods alone into the dark appealed her to no extent. She sighed and turned herself away, but she felt that she would have followed him if she had known him well enough._

* * *

 _Author's Note_

 _Thank you so much for the reads, reviews, follows and favorites! :) Keep reviewing!_


	8. Chapter 8

Labyrinthine Chapter Eight

After a good rest of two or three hours, Gilbert felt a little more refreshed and hopeful. He even managed to eat a few bites of supper in the afternoon and kept it down even though he felt slightly nauseous. Dr Brown came for a hurried check up late in the afternoon and announced that Gilbert was fit for a train ride to Four Winds, which had made all the cheerfulness vanish. He decided to spend the rest of the day in bed so that he could avoid being questioned until he was ready to tell the truth.

Anne hadn't left his side ever since he had woken and she kept rustling around trying to make him comfortable.

Gilbert tried to push his guilt away as she scampered down towards the garden to get him fresh flowers.

He pushed himself up from the bed and sauntered towards the window.

 _Talk to her._ He said sternly to himself. _Tell her the truth the moment she comes up._

But his throat began to dry up at the thought of telling her about Winona. She was happy and he didn't want to spoil it. Anne was alive and talking to him and tending to him. He didn't want to ruin this time that he had with her.

He looked at her cheerful form as she entered the room with her hands full of flowers.

"Anne, we need to talk." he said hoarsely.

"What do you want to talk about?" Anne asked pleasantly as she bent to arrange the flowers neatly in a vase on the bedside table.

Gilbert ran a hand through his hair. Anne straightened up and eyed him curiously from across the room. He turned his gaze from her and fixed it on the view outside.

 _I can't do it._

He sighed in defeat. There was another issue that he meant to address.

"You've been here for close to a year now." he remarked slowly. "How has it been? Has Mrs. Shirley been alright to you?"

Anne raised her eyebrows and looked at him incredulously.

"It hasn't been the best year of my life." she said. "But of course Aunt Julia has been splendid to me. Why did you ask that?"

Gilbert folded his hands and peered at the door to ensure that Mrs. Shirley wasn't around to overhear their conversation.

"Well, I was wondering about the letters." he said frankly. "It is highly unlikely that all of us collectively ignored all the letters that you sent."

Anne sighed and walked towards him slowly.

"Gilbert, even I have thought about this often." she muttered. "I have doubted Aunt Julia's integrity at times as well. But she was the one who wrote to Diana and Mrs. Moore about me. Also, she saved my life- we can't forget that."

"I'll be eternally grateful to her for taking care of you." he nodded sincerely. "But it's too suspicious, Anne. Are you sure she's even your real Aunt?"

"She certainly is." Anne exclaimed. "I've seen all the paperwork about my Uncle's will and he indeed has left a decent amount of money for his long lost niece Anne Shirley. But I am almost sure that she did not want me to leave."

"But why would she do such a thing?" he wondered. "Why would she try to keep you from meeting us?"

Anne looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well, she has been lonely for two years, Gilbert." she said. "She loved her husband more than anything else in the world and she lost him abruptly to scarlet fever. As far as I know, she isn't well acquainted with her son as well."

"You think her loneliness made her do this to you?" he asked incredulously.

Anne nodded gravely.

"Precisely. And then she felt so ashamed of herself that she wrote to Diana and Leslie Moore to rectify her past mistakes."

Before Gilbert could speak, she placed her hand lightly on his arm to stop him.

"Let's not give her a hard time about this." she pleaded. "That woman has taken care of me, Gil. We shouldn't forget that after all."

"You're right." he said quietly.

"Oh, and take this." Anne pulled out a piece of paper from the pocket of her apron and placed it in his hands.

Gilbert anxiously took it from her and opened it nervously.

"There was a phone call for you." she explained. "That woman told me to give this message to you when I said I was your wife."

 _My father is sick. Come back soon. -Winona._

"It looks like it's from one of your patients." Anne said animatedly. "Is Winona a patient of yours?"

Gilbert felt his heart skip a beat. Anne had told Winona that she was his wife.

"She isn't."

* * *

 _Flashback_

 _Winona stormed out of the little office and into the garden clutching the handle of her nurse's bag so tightly that it dug into her palms painfully. She had nearly crossed the small garden when a flustered Alex appeared in the doorway looking anxious. She pushed the gate open with a kick and continued to walk with exceptional speed._

 _"Winona, wait!" he shouted._

 _She placed a hand on the fence to catch her breath and stood there as he caught up to her with only a few steps of his long legs. She had to wait for him, after all. They were supposed to be together all afternoon._

 _You're here as his nurse. She scolded herself. Act like one!_

 _But how could she?_

 _"What are you doing here, Alex?" she whispered angrily at him with an anxious glance at the office door hoping that Doctor Blythe hadn't seen any of this._

 _Alex ran a hand through his long locks and bit into his bottom lip._

 _"If you believe that I was here so that I could get you to talk to me, you're wrong." He explained with clenched teeth._

 _Winona looked up at him suspiciously._

 _"What do you mean?" she said in a hushed voice while keeping an eye on the office. "Was- was all that true?"_

 _Alex hunched his shoulders and gave a slight nod._

 _"Of course." he said bitterly. "I can't believe you thought I was lying."_

 _Winona sighed and rubbed her forehead in frustration._

 _"I'm sorry, Alex." She said slowly. "I shouldn't have presumed you were making it all up. It's just that you've been trying to get me talking to you for weeks and-"_

 _"It's okay." he said quietly. "I deserve this."_

 _"No, you don't." she assured him fearfully and moved her hand towards his wrist and held it lightly. "I would never believe you would try to- I mean-"_

 _He pulled his arm out from her grasp and hid it behind him._

 _"It was just a moment of weakness." he muttered. "I never meant to- to kill myself."_

 _"But it could have happened!" she protested anxiously. "I can't imagine what would have happened if you had cut the right vein, Alex."_

 _She felt tears welling up in her eyes and folded her lips tightly._

 _"Why?" she managed to ask through the lump that had formed in her throat._

 _Alex let out a long sigh._

 _"I'm not sure I want to go down that road today. Please." he said hoarsely. "I'd really appreciate it if you could leave me alone."_

 _She shook her head eagerly._

 _"I can't leave you alone!" she exclaimed. "Dr Blythe wants me to drop you home and ensure that you are well rested. I even have your medicines with me."_

 _"I don't need any medicines."_

 _"Alex." she said warningly._

 _"I really don't!" He defended shakily and looked at her pleadingly. "My life has been nothing but a series of unfortunate events, failures and heartbreaks. I failed miserably in the career that I chased for all these years. My parents don't want me back, you won't even look at me and I have a load of debt on my shoulders. I was drunk and in a moment of weakness I cut my arm."_

 _He sighed nervously._

 _"Dr Blythe has bandaged my wound." he said slowly. "And I am in my senses now. I promise I won't repeat what I did last night. I don't want you to pity me."_

 _"I thought you cut the wrong vein on purpose." Winona muttered guiltily. "I'm very sorry, Alex. I really am. And I don't pity you. Not at all."_

 _"Very well." he murmured slowly and fixed his eyes on his shoes._

 _"Now let me get you home." she said through the lump forming in her throat. "I'll make you some tea and we'll talk."_

 _He looked at her tenderly and nodded. She couldn't help but feel warm at the hint of the smile that had appeared on his handsome face._

 _She could literally feel herself going downhill again._

* * *

 _Author's Note-_

 _Hello, everyone!_

 _I'm so sorry for such a late update! I've been MIA from the forums entirely as I had to travel to another country for work urgently last month and that took all the time that I had. But I'm back to my dear old home and I plan to update this story frequently now. :) I hope you guys are still around! Also, I know this chapter is much shorter than usual, but I'll try to make up for it with a quick update._

 _Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a review!_

 _Love,_

 _Ashwini_


	9. Chapter 9

Labyrinthine Chapter Nine

Gilbert held on to her hand tightly as he led her towards the garden for some privacy. The sun was about to set and the sky decorated with all the magnificent shades of twilight. A perfect setting for a romantic outing, one would say, but there wasn't anything remotely romantic about the moment.

Gilbert looked at the bewildered face of Anne in the dim lighting silently, only the shuffling of their feet over the grass breaking the stillness of the moment. He didn't pause until they were well away from the house and near the middle of the small garden. He could smell a familiar scent of flowers as his hazel eyes danced between her grey ones. He tried to capture the moment like a photograph- them standing among Anne's favorite flowers drenched in the evening light as she held onto his hand tightly. Would it be the same after he told her?

Perhaps it would be. Anne had been surprisingly forgiving of her Aunt just a few hours ago.

But he didn't dare hope.

"You're really scaring me, Gilbert." She sounded alarmed as she broke the silence. "Why do you look so solemn? Is it bad news?"

Gilbert took a shaky breath and bent down to plant a tender kiss on her lips. Was it the last time he had kissed her?

"Anne, first of all, please keep in mind that I love you with all my heart." He whispered slowly, his lips brushing against hers as he spoke. He lingered over her porcelain skin for a moment before he withdrew from her unwillingly.

"I know that." She spoke softly, her voice tinted with anticipation.

He took a step back from her before he spoke. There was more love and trust in her eyes than he could handle in that moment.

"Anne- I need to tell you something."

Anne gave him an encouraging smile which didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Gil, you have said that a hundred times now." she remarked. "Just tell me what it is. You look so serious- it's scaring me. What is it?"

Much to his agony, he could feel tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

"Please don't hate me when I say this, Anne-girl." he muttered hoarsely.

"Gilbert Blythe, why on earth would I hate you?" she stepped closer to him with concern and placed a warm hand on his cheek. "I'm sure whatever it is it's not your faul-"

"I got married." He blurted before he could hear the rest of the sentence and closed his eyes.

He felt a tear rolling from his eyes and onto her palm as he lifted his eyelids to look at her. She blinked at him for a moment in disbelief.

"What?" she muttered, the word barely audible.

"I got married, Anne." he repeated more clearly and looked away from her and at the flowers by the fence, his heart beating faster than ever. He bit his lips hard as he felt the warmth of her hand disappear from his cheek.

"You got married?" he could hear the disbelief in her voice. "To someone else?"

He hesitated before he looked back at her reluctantly.

"Yes, but-"

"You got married." She muttered with tears welling up in her eyes. "I can't believe this. I-I never thought of this."

She tried to take a step back but he caught her arm and pulled her closer once again.

"Anne, don't go." he said helplessly. "I can't live without you- I've understood that much in the past year. Please."

But her grey eyes were dim.

"You say you can't live without me?" She whispered. "And yet you- you _fell in love_ with someone else?"

Gilbert tightened his grip on her as he spoke urgently.

"No, I didn't." he said firmly. "I only love you, Anne. It was a compromise."

"Let me go, Gilbert." she said through clenched teeth and gestured at her arm.

"No, Anne- you have to listen to me." he pleaded, fear creeping in his heart. "I didn't marry her for love. I'll explain everything to you once we go to Four Winds."

She released her hand with a jerk from his grasp and took a step away from him.

"I-I can't go to Four Winds now." her lips quivered as she spoke. "I can't see- her."

"Anne, please." his voice broke and another tear made its way down his left cheek. "Just come with me- try to trust me a little. I'll tell you everything but I need to talk to Winona first. Just come with me."

"I can't believe you did this."

"Anne I thought you were dead." He said helplessly. "Surely you can give me some time. You were so forgiving about what your Aunt did to you before."

Anne rubbed her forehead with her hand.

"It's different." she muttered. "You forgive someone for their mistakes. I can't forgive you for something that you did on purpose."

"I did it for our son, Anne." he murmured. "At least in part. Your Aunt had her reasons and so did I. If you can understand her pain, why not mine?"

"Well, I don't love my Aunt as much as I love you." she replied huskily. "And I know I wouldn't have married again if you had died Gilbert. Not even for James."

And she stormed into the house leaving him alone under the twilight sky.

* * *

Gilbert struggled to still his shaking hands as he dialed his own number from Mrs. Shirley's telephone. Anne sat in an armchair with her head resting on the back, her eyes determined. She hadn't spoken a word to him after he had revealed his marriage to her, which pained him more than he could tell. He could have handled her anger, but he did not know how to bear the fact that she was disappointed in him. He had also told Mrs. Shirley the truth and she had kindly allowed him to call Winona from her own telephone.

As much as he didn't want to speak to her in front of Anne, it was his duty to ask her about her father's help. He knew she hadn't spoken to her father after her mother's death and had figured that he must be seriously ill if she found out about his illness.

"Hello?"

He felt his stomach drop as he heard Winona's voice on the phone.

"Winona? It's Gilbert." He said nervously through a dry throat.

He could hear the relief in her voice as she spoke.

"Gilbert Blythe! I was worried to death about you. James has been pestering me all day long asking why you never called when you reached."

"I'm sorry." he spoke nervously as he eyed Anne from the corner of his eye. She was still, but he could tell that she was listening intently to each of his words.

"What happened to your father? Is he sick?" he queried.

"I'm afraid so, Gilbert." she sounded worried as she spoke. "I saw him in the church yesterday and he seemingly has lost a lot of weight rapidly. He hasn't been to church for three Sundays straight. Leslie talked to his housekeeper after the service and she found out that he has lost his appetite almost entirely. He has barely eaten for weeks."

"That's no good." Gilbert frowned. "It could lead to several possibilities, all of them alarming."

"I understood that much." she agreed. "How about you try to come back as soon as possible and we go down to visit him?"

"No problem- but would you really go?" he asked.

"I have to." she said softly. "And not only because he is my father. I'd have done it for any person. You never let a patient be ignored- I've learnt that much from you."

He gave a small smile.

"That's brave of you." he nodded.

"Why didn't you call when you reach?" she asked. "James is scared that you won't return and I'm having a hard time answering his questions."

"Put him on the phone." he suggested.

"He's asleep." she said. "We had an early dinner today and I put him to bed right after. Now why didn't you call?"

"I was caught up here. You won't believe what happened when I reached, Winona. I came to find out that Anne has been alive the whole time."

"Anne- what?" she exclaimed. "Gilbert, are you alright? Have you started dreaming again?"

Gilbert rolled his eyes.

"Of course not. I saw her- I've met her. In fact I spent the whole day with her."

"Are you telling me that she is back from the dead?" the disbelief in her voice irritated him a little.

"She has never been dead! She was saved from the train accident and somehow ended up at her Aunt's place and has been here ever since." he explained rapidly, conscious of the fact that Mrs. Shirley and Anne were listening. "I'll explain it in person later. But she's coming back with me."

Winona remained silent for a long time.

"What do I tell James?" she asked, her voice firm.

Gilbert looked at Anne for a moment who chose to avoid his gaze.

"Just tell him that I'm fine and that I will bring him a gift from Bolingbroke."

"I will." she said slowly. "Take care, Gilbert."

"You too." He said and sighed as he heard her cut the call.

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

 _The sky wasn't gray, but a soothing lavender and brilliant amber as they stretched out their legs onto the sand and smiled warmly at one another. Winona hadn't been this relaxed in a long time and she appreciated the calmness with all her heart. The waves were crashing fiercely onto the shore and the sound gave her an odd sense of satisfaction. She glanced sideways at Alex, who was staring at the lighthouse intently, his eyes more peaceful than she had seen ever since he had left Gilbert's clinic that day._

 _"You were right." he whispered in awe. "I've never seen anything more beautiful."_

 _Winona grinned heartily._

 _"I've only recently discovered this part of the shore." she explained. "It's closer to my house and anyone hardly bothers to walk this far from the Glen. There are a few perks of having a house so far away after all."_

 _Alex nodded and ruffled his long hair._

 _"I'll take you to my favorite place some day." he suggested. "You probably know it already, but it doesn't look as peaceful as it is."_

 _Winona crinkled her eyes._

 _"It's that half built stone wall behind my house, isn't it?" she asked skeptically._

 _"How did you know?" he asked in surprise._

 _She laughed triumphantly at his bewildered expressions and shrugged._

 _"I've been there before and I saw you sitting there two nights ago. It's that simple." she stated. "But let me warn you- that place is dangerous."_

 _His eyebrows shot up in surprise._

 _"Why?"_

 _"I've been told that it's a meeting point for the robbers from the fishing village." she said sincerely which made him laugh._

 _"Come off it, Winona." he waved a hand at her. "There are no robbers in the fishing village."_

 _"The rowdy boys who look fit to kill then." she exclaimed. "Those three look terrifying to me. Even I saw them sneaking behind the wall late into the night." she shuddered at the thought of it. "Just make sure you don't sit there after dark."_

 _"I will." he assured her with a pat on her hand which made her heart skip a beat. "So? What are we doing today?" he asked with a hint of excitement._

 _She looked at him apologetically._

 _"I have to work all day long." she said. "Gilbert is planning to do rounds all day. Not many patients visit the clinic on Mondays anyway."_

 _Alex folded his hands._

 _"You call him Gilbert?" he asked coolly._

 _"Not to his face." she said sheepishly. "But it does escape my mouth sometimes. Probably because I hear Miss Cuthbert calling him that all the time. Why?"_

 _"Nothing." he shrugged, but his stiff expressions said otherwise. "You seem to be very close to him- that's all."_

 _Winona looked at him, amused. Was he by any chance jealous?_

 _"He is my employer and sort of a friend." she said. "Poor fellow is struggling to cope with his wife's death. I just feel bad for him. He needs a friend."_

 _"Yes, he wants your friendship to get over his wife." he added a little sarcastically._

 _Winona tried to compose herself, but his behavior sent a shiver down her spine. She was familiar with his possessiveness and that made her fearful._

 _"Alex, just let it go." she said as calmly as she could._

 _"You were playing with his son the other day." he spoke in a rough voice._

 _"That boy has lost his mother." she said sternly._

 _"Are you trying to be that?" he asked coldly._

 _Winona glanced at him stormily._

 _"You say another word about me and Gilbert and I leave you." she warned._

 _"I can't afford that." he whispered as he clasped her hand into his._

* * *

 _Author's note:_

 _Thank you for reading, reviewing, following and adding this story to your favorites! :)_

 _Keep letting me know your thoughts in that little box below._

 _Love,_

 _Ashwini_


	10. Chapter 10

Labyrinthine Chapter Ten

Steam billowed across the train platform as the evening train screeched to a halt and the station became abuzz with passengers hurrying to board. Anne Blythe dug the heels of her shoes into the pavement as she breathed in the soot and grime of the station, her fists clenched tightly. The unpleasant memories had begun to haunt her ever since she had held her ticket in her hands for the first time. She had done her best to act as normal as possible, but had failed to keep her tears at bay when they had left for the station half an hour ago. Aunt Julia had held her close as warm tears fell down from her grey eyes and had whispered a few words of comfort.

Anne had a lot to say to her.

Had she really hidden her letters? If yes, why? If not, who had?

But at that moment of leaving, she had felt that she had enough to keep her mind troubled and she couldn't take more. The fear of boarding the train had occupied her mind to the core.

 _Breathe in. Count till three. Breathe out._

She repeated Dr Brown's instructions in her head and attempted to regulate her breaths slowly. She could feel her heart racing as she did so, but she tried to push away all her fears to the back of her mind.

 _Everything will be alright._ She told herself.

Suddenly a dark fog seemed to encompass her. She tugged at the collar of her dress, gasping as the vision of the blazing fire crept into her heart- so detailed that she could almost feel the heat. Everything was dark and a heart wrenching scream echoed through the compartments...

She suddenly felt herself jerk out of her mind as she felt a warm pressure on her arm. She turned a little to see Gilbert holding her arm tightly, his eyes clouded with worry.

"It's alright." he whispered. "I'm here. Nothing's going to happen."

Anne gulped slowly and entwined her fingers in his, seeking support. For a moment, she even forgot that she had no words to say to him and held onto his hand tightly as they stepped up on the train together. Gilbert guided her cautiously through the passage towards the cabin that had been booked for them and she fought to keep her breaths stable and mind calm.

Gilbert released her hand long enough to push open the door for her. She looked at him from the corners of her eyes and felt a little guilty about the shadow of fear that loomed in his hazel eyes. She opened her mouth to say something to him, but nothing came out. She merely gave a nod and settled herself onto her seat by the little window.

He hesitated at the door for a moment before he slumped down on the seat across from her and stared down at his shoes. Anne noticed that he had done this a lot in the past two days and felt a tiny pang of guilt. She knew she was being unreasonable and the most practical action would be talking to him about their situation, but when has love ever been sensible? She rubbed her forehead steadily as her mind battled whether or not to talk to him.

Gilbert was studying her face quietly from across and leaned towards her with concern.

"Are you alright, Anne?" He asked fearfully. "I know you're upset with me, but I would advise you to talk to me whenever you feel like you're nauseous or-"

"I'm not upset with you." she blurted and felt amused at the shocked expression on Gilbert's face. "I don't know what I feel." she added with her lips pursed.

Gilbert nodded and gave her an apologetic look.

"You have every right to feel- whatever you're feeling." he said in a low voice. His tone made her head jerk and she met his eyes with a startled look. Was he feeling ashamed of himself?

"Gilbert, I'm not angry with you." she said slowly. "I do not think it's your fault. I will need time to think, to adjust. It's not something that we'll deal with and move past, Gilbert. It's a question of our lives."

Gilbert sighed and clasped his hands together.

"I know." he nodded.

Anne felt her heart skip a beat as she prepared a question in her mind.

"How is she?" she gulped. " Is she good with James?"

Gilbert gave a little smile.

"She's excellent with him, Anne-girl. James loves her and so does she." he sighed. "In fact there's nothing wrong with her. In fact, she is one of the strongest people that I've met. Life has given her a lot of pain and she had fought through it all. And to give her more of that is the last thing that I want to do." he paused. "There's only one problem."

Anne's head shot up at this.

"What?"

"I don't love her." he said throatily. "And she doesn't love me either."

"Gilbert, will you do something for me?" she asked in a low voice.

"What?"

"Tell me everything."

* * *

Winona cradled a whimpering Nora cautiously in her arms as she paced the room quietly. Her daughter had woke her up from her slumber abruptly so she struggled to keep her eyes open. She had found it difficult to sleep for the past two nights, after she had talked to Gilbert on the phone, so she indeed needed rest more than anything else. But Nora had refused to stop crying that night.

Had she sensed what was coming?

Winona sighed at that thought and held her daughter closer to her bosom. What was she going to do? If Anne was alive there was no possibility that her marriage to Gilbert was going to work. And if Gilbert was to offer to stay with her, would she accept him?

She had seen Gilbert excuse himself to the solitude of woods every night after their rounds where his mask of strength would fall down. She had seen him bite his lips until they bled to keep himself from crying whenever the Anderson girl from the Glen who wore her red hair in two long braids came to visit him. She had seen how he buried Anne's photo deep into his desk drawer after she had put it in a nice frame. She had spotted him sitting alone in the most secluded and dangerous places around the town at odd hours, crying silently. She could still feel the shaking of his freezing body against hers as he sobbed for his dead wife in her arms.

She knew what Anne was to him. How could she take her away from him?

She looked at her daughter tearfully. What would happen to this darling little soul? Would Gilbert want to keep her? Her heart wrenched at the thought of living without Nora crossed her mind.

"We'll find a way out." She whispered and planted a kiss on her forehead.

But she hardly felt that way.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

He couldn't tell her everything. But he decided to begin anyway. The fast paced events of the last year had welled up in his mind for so long that he felt telling someone would be a relief. His heart began to feel lighter as he narrated the story of the year that he lived without her.

"It was Uncle Dave's sudden death that pushed me towards moving to Four Winds." He began to speak. "When Aunt Katherine informed Mother about what happened, Mother insisted that I move away and start afresh. Practicing in Avonlea had become difficult anyway… Everyone would look at me with sympathy, as the news of your death had spread over the town like a wildfire. I needed to escape the piteous glances and polite questions about how I was doing. So I decided to move."

"What about James?" Anne asked eagerly.

"Well, initially I had thought that he would stay home with my parents until I found a house and a housekeeper for him." Gilbert said a little hesitantly. "But ever since you- you went away, he has been scared of leaving me. Especially if I'm taking a train."

He saw Anne's lips tremble and reached forward to grasp her slender hand in his.

"Anne you don't have to listen to this." He said softly.

"Oh, but I do!" she exclaimed, wiping her eyes with her other hand. "I need to know what happened. Please keep going, Gil."

Gilbert gave her hand a pat before speaking again.

"He threw such a fit when I announced my plan that, I had to take him with me. Marilla agreed to accompany me for a month and I managed to find a small house for us with the help of Aunt Katherine. The house is very simple, but it was all I could afford at that time. It also has a nice room which I thought would make a presentable office for me."

"How were the people?" Anne questioned.

Gilbert thought for a moment.

"They were rather welcoming, yes," he nodded. "Uncle Dave had an excellent reputation there. Setting up the practice was much easier than it had been in Avonlea. We don't have a lot of neighbors either- just Leslie Moore and Miss Cornelia. Both of them are excellent company though. Especially Miss Cornelia." He smiled despite of himself. "I think you'd find her rather likeable."

"How did you meet Winona?"

Gilbert looked up, startled by her frank question, but saw a determination in her eyes. He hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"After one week, I felt that I needed someone to help me with my patients." He said quietly. "I wasn't familiar with them, so often they would refuse to open up and wouldn't tell me their problems frankly. I needed someone they knew who might help me make them more comfortable. I couldn't afford to employ a trained nurse- and I didn't require one. Just someone with a cheerful smile and good bedside manner was all I wanted. Leslie suggested I hire Winona. She was under a lot of debt due to her mother's long illness and was looking for work. Leslie and she are childhood friends- so I decided to give her a chance."

He sighed.

"What happened after that?"

"Well, she turned out to be a better help than I had expected." He said with a small smile. "She had spent half of her life taking care of her ailing mother alone. So she was already familiar with a lot of the work. Soon, she began to spend a lot of time at my office- arranging files and helping me treat minor injuries like cuts and scrapes. Since she was often there, she soon befriended both Marilla and James. James became rather fond of her eventually- there came a time when he refused to even have his supper without her."

He looked tentatively at Anne, checking her eyes for any sign of discomfort. When he felt that she was more eager than ever to learn what happened between him and Winona, he eyed her pleadingly.

"Look, Anne- I can't tell you what happened until I talk to Winona. You are the person to whom I can tell anything, but it's so private that- and it concerns my profession as well."

For a moment, he thought that he saw a hurt expression on her face, but she composed herself quickly.

"I understand." She sighed. "I don't want you to compromise professional ethics for me of course."

Gilbert gave a sigh of relief and gave her a small smile.

"I'm just glad that you are talking to me." He said gratefully.

"I can't believe I'm talking to you." She shook her head. "But the past year has made me more patient than I thought I could ever be in my entire life."

Gilbert hesitated for a moment before leaning in towards her once again.

"Anne, there's something I wanted to talk about earlier."

"Go on."

"Why didn't you say anything to Aunt Julia?" he asked. "I know you're related to her- but I can't help but get frustrated with that woman. Why did she do such a wicked thing to you? Aren't you angry at all?"

Anne smoothed her skirts on her lap and looked at him intently.

"We still don't know if she did it for sure."

Gilbert huffed.

"Come on, Anne! Who else could do it but her?"

"I don't know…"

"You should have talked to her."

"Gilbert she has done a lot for me. She might have her reasons."

"Then I need to know them!" he said through gritted teeth. "I've been through hell for the last one year because of her. And I'm sure your visit to her wasn't a walk in the park either. That woman shouldn't be forgiven so easily."

Anne gave a sigh of defeat.

"I guess I should have talked to her." She muttered. "Let's just take care of the problem that we have in our hands right now first and then think about Aunt Julia. What are we going to do about this Winona situation?"

Gilbert pursed his lips. He wasn't willing to drop Aunt Julia's subject just yet, but he didn't want her to start a cold war again. He took a deep breath and thought about her question.

"No one from Four Winds knows what my first wife looked like- except for Winona and Aunt Katherine. So no one would recognize you. Initially we are safe. We'll have to find out what cover we can find for you." He said, his voice strained.

"Gilbert, what are we going to do?"

"You know I love you, Anne-girl." He said hurtfully. "But before I come back to you, I need to make sure that Winona and Nora remain safe and dignified."

"Who is Nora?"

 ** _Flashback_**

 _The morning of Marilla's departure from Four Winds found Gilbert lying in his bed long after the other occupants of the small house had awoken. He was fully dressed, yet curled into a tight ball among wrinkled sheets and bedcovers, eyes fixed on the wall of his bedroom. He had risen at the creak of the dawn, ready to accompany Marilla and James to Avonlea, but the wall of self control that he had built around himself had crumpled as a vivid image of Green Gables flashed before his eyes and he had to retreat to the safety of his bed._

 _Gilbert didn't want to return home- that was the only thing he was certain of. Home meant people who loved him, yes, but it also meant memories and pitiful glances and unwelcomed sympathy. He had written to his parents every week for the past month, but all the letters were more about James and his medical practice rather than himself. He knew Marilla had written to them multiple times and must have told them about everything he had done from midnight ramblings to shutting himself in his room for hours. He couldn't bear to see the concern on their faces. He didn't need sympathy or pity or even care. He needed people to let him grieve._

 _A sharp knock on the door startled him slightly, but he made no move to get up and answer it. He pushed himself to rise from the bed and rested his feet on the floor. He was sure it was Marilla, making sure he was up and dressed and he thought it would be better if she just assumed that he was sleeping. But the door creaked open after a minute and someone seemed to have let themselves in, without shutting the door behind them. Gilbert didn't turn to see who it was. And then to his immense surprise, it was Winona Smith who spoke._

 _"I'm sorry for coming up here, Doctor." She said awkwardly. "But could I see you for a moment?"_

 _He turned slightly much against his will. Winona stood politely on the landing, just outside the door. Gilbert walked blankly towards her, hoping he looked as normal as possible and closed the bedroom door behind him._

 _"James is giving us a hard time, Dr Blythe." She said intently, her voice slightly shaking. "He doesn't want to stay in Avonlea."_

 _Gilbert tried to pull himself out of the white fog that seemed to occupy his brain and attempted to concentrate on what she was telling him._

 _"Why?"_

 _Winona swallowed nervously and smoothed her brown hair absently._

 _"Well- he doesn't want to leave you."_

 _Gilbert sighed and shifted from one foot to another._

 _"It's only for a few days." He said casually, but felt as if someone had tore his heart in two. "He needs to stay there with my parents only until I find a decent housekeeper for him. It's an important decision- I can't just hire the next woman that comes along."_

 _"He recently lost his mother. Of course he's scared, Doctor Blythe." She muttered her voice almost inaudible."He doesn't understand these things."_

 _Gilbert didn't react to this, but was hit with a blinding memory of Anne kissing James goodbye as she dropped him off at Green Gables, while he sat in the carriage- not talking to her and sulking. He pushed it away, drawing blankness around him once again. It was safer and easier. Thinking, on the other hand, was too painful._

 _Winona waited, wondering if she would receive a response and then tried with cheeriness that was blatantly fake. Perhaps she had sensed that she had entered a dangerous territory._

 _"You should at least come down and talk to him. Try to assure him that it's only going to be a visit to his grandparents and not a permanent settlement." She said. "He's in the garden, watering the plants with Miss Cuthbert. You'll feel better if you join us there- the weather is rather pleasant."_

 _Gilbert finally lifted his gaze to meet hers._

 _"Do you really think I care about the weather?" he asked, his voice hoarse from suppressed emotions._

 _Winona looked mildly pleased that she had at least elicited an authentic response from him. But that was all he wanted to say to her._

 _"Look," she said slowly, dropping the façade of cheerfulness she had momentarily donned. "You can't hide in there forever. Shutting yourself here isn't doing any good to anyone, including you. Though I and Miss Cuthbert are trying our best, James needs to know that you are there for him. He needs you the most."_

 _When Gilbert chose not to answer, she continued heatedly._

 _"He is only a child Dr Blythe. He doesn't understand what you're going through. He's-"_

 _By that time Gilbert had lost every bit of patience that he had._

 _"Do_ you _understand what I'm going through?" he whispered angrily, his fists clenched tightly. "You would never get it. None of you would get it. It feels like hell to have a loved one leave you all of a sudden. You think I don't care about my son? I wouldn't be here, breathing if it wasn't for him. There is no other reason for me to live other than him. I wake up thinking of him when I want to-"_

 _He took a deep breath, wondering if he had crossed a line. Much to his surprise, there were no tears in Winona's fiery eyes. He turned away from her, trying to regain his senses._

 _"Coping with my mother's death when my father had turned his back on us wasn't a piece of cake. I know what death feels like. Someone I loved chose his dreams over me in a minute. I know what heartbreak is. I understand you."_

 _Gilbert turned and stared at her, having never given a thought on what she must have dealt with in her own life. He had worked with her for over a month, but had never bothered to ask her a single question about her life. Had he become that self-centered? Winona had taken care of James a number of times. He even remembered her feeding him spoon by spoon when he was especially uncooperative and how she had often played with him during idle hours. It all made sense to him and he felt ashamed._

 _"Winona, I-" he began shakily but she stopped him with her hand._

 _"I know you're not ready." She said. "But for a moment, stop being Gilbert and just be James's father."_

 _Gilbert turned himself away from her and rubbed the corners of his eyes._

 _"I'll be down in a moment." He assured her._

 _Author's note_

Thank you for every follow, favourite and review that you have given! :) It means a lot to me that people want to keep reading this story and are curious to know what would happen next. Some of you PM'd be to know when I'll be updating and it made me happy to no extent. I apologise for being such a lousy updater and I promise I'll try my best to post new chapters sooner! :) Thank you so much for the love! And if you enjoy this story- please leave a review. Reviews honestly keep me going with this story even if I don't have inspiration at all. I don't mind if it's a paragraph or a sentence or a word. It's lovely to hear what you guys think. :)

Love,

Ashwini


	12. Chapter 12

Labyrinthine Chapter Twelve

"Are we having guests over, Mama?"

Winona stopped fluffing the cushions to turn and look at the five year old standing at the bottom of the staircase nibbling at one of the cookies from the fresh batch that she had made that morning.

"No, darling." She replied absently and resumed her work with another cushion.

"Then why are we tidying up the house?"

"Because that's how the house should be at all times." She answered with a pointed glance at him. He scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"It's not me! Nora plays with the pillows on the couch." He protested in his best "I'm innocent" tone. Winona gave a small smile despite of herself.

"They're called cushions, James." She corrected him.

"What's the difference?"

Winona opened her mouth to answer, but huffed as she looked at him properly. His red curls were trying to grow in every single direction away from his head and some of them were even brushing the nape of his neck. She had completely forgotten that he needed to have a haircut because of the additional work of having to answer Gilbert's calls.

"Never mind. Come here." She sighed and dropped down on the sofa as he ran towards her. She made him stand right in front of her lap and began to brush her fingers softly through his overgrown hair as he struggled to eat the cookie despite her interruptions.

 _Should I tell him that his mother's coming back?_ She wondered.

Gilbert's train was to arrive within a few hours. Winona had requested Leslie to be at the station to pick up the two and bring them home and had worked hard to make the house look presentable so that Anne wouldn't think her a terrible housewife, but she hadn't really prepared herself mentally for the future events. Nonetheless she felt that James needed to know that he would be seeing his mother again. She was still unsure of how he would react if he suddenly saw her at his doorstep.

 _Will I have to part with my little boy?_

She tried to fight the lump forming in her throat as James grinned at her mischievously. He looked rather proud of himself for eating the cookie without earning a good scolding from her. She met his innocent grey eyes with a heavy heart.

"James, do you know who's coming to meet you?" she asked with a fake cheerfulness and she was glad he was too young to notice.

James blinked at her in confusion.

"But you just said we're not having any guests." He shrugged.

"That person isn't a guest per se." she pointed. "More like a part of the family."

"Are we having another baby?" he asked, his eyes widened.

Winona laughed despite of her state of mind and pulled him closer fondly.

"No, silly!" she exclaimed. "It's- your mother."

His eyes widened further and he pulled the cookie away from his mouth.

"Who?"

"Your mother, James. Anne Blythe." Winona said softly. "She left on a train, do you remember?"

"Yes." He said frowning. "But Dad said she won't come back."

"Well, he was wrong." Winona nodded. "Of course, he was wrong! No mother would leave a sweetheart like you forever, would she? Do you remember how I left Nora with Aunt Leslie when we went down to show you the light house?"

He nodded eagerly.

"That's exactly how she left you with me! It's only that I left Nora for a few hours and she left you for a year. It doesn't make any difference."

James gave a confused nod.

"Had she gone to the shore too?"

"Yes. But to a shore somewhere far away from here."

"Why?"

"So that she could tell you stories about that part of the world." Winona said, hoping she had convinced him.

"When we came back from the shore," he said skeptically. "You took Nora away from Aunt Leslie's house. Would she take me from you?"

Winona bit her lip hard to keep her tears from flowing.

"That is for her to decide." She said in a shaky voice. "But even after I took Nora away, Aunt Leslie still gets to meet her, doesn't she?"

James's face brightened up.

"Then, that's fine!" he said cheerfully. "Can we take her to the shore to show the castle that I made the other day? Would it still be there?"

"If it isn't there, you can always build a new one." She said with a plastic smile and pulled him into a tight embrace.

 ** _Flashback_**

 _Winona rested her head against the cold stone wall and closed her eyes to sink in the comfortable silence. She could hear the stormy waves crashing on rocks in the distance but it felt pleasantly silent otherwise. Even the troubling thoughts seemed to leave her mind as she sat there, only leaving her with a sense of calmness._

 _The old wall felt like a friend to her at times. It had stood behind her house for years, half-built, yet fighting every season triumphantly on its own. She had grown up with it in a way- she had written on it with a piece of chalk as a child and had used it as a secret spot in her adulthood. That thing had seen her at her worst and at her best. She had spent many evenings there with Alex when they were just sixteen and had cried her heart out against it after he left. Now that they had rekindled their friendship, they had made it their meeting spot once again._

 _Every evening she would finish her work with Gilbert and would sit there waiting for him to come back from the library up in Glen where he usually spent his day researching for his new book. They sat there talking for hours these days, even till midnight on rare occasions, because the thing that they wanted to say seemed to be endless. Alex had seen his worst days in the years that they had spent apart and her life hadn't been particularly easy as well. They ended up telling each other everything frankly, much to her own surprise. As much as she wanted to keep a distance from him, she felt that she needed someone and he needed to be taken care of. He was clearly depressed and had lost all hope from his life when he came back to Four Winds. But ever since they had become friends again, she had seen some colour return to his face and he had even started to write a new manuscript._

 _There was nothing in this world that satisfied her more than helping someone._

 _"Winona?"_

 _She nearly jumped at the abrupt sound and looked around with wide eyes. Much to her surprise, Gilbert Blythe was standing over her with his hands in his pockets, looking as grim and tired as usual. She had left the office just an hour ago. She hastened to get up quickly and brushed her dress._

 _"Dr Blythe!" she said, catching her breath. "Is there an emergency?"_

 _The doctor only shook his head._

 _"Relax. I was coming over to your house to talk to you about something important, but then I saw that you were sitting here." He explained. "I could've told you in the office, but I wanted to make a proper invitation."_

 _"An invitation?" she puzzled._

 _Gilbert gave a tiny nod._

 _"Yes. I came here to invite you to have dinner with us tomorrow night."_

 _"What?" she blurted and then composed herself. "I mean- thank you. But-"_

 _"I know it's Sunday and it's your day off." He said. "But trust me, this has nothing to do with work. My parents are visiting me from Avonlea since James doesn't want to go there. They have heard so much about you from me and him that they wish to meet you. Also, you've been taking care of James for nearly all week is just our way of saying thank you."_

 _"Your parents?" Winona muttered. "But Dr Blythe-"_

 _"Do you have other plans?" he asked politely._

 _Winona opened her mouth to say yes, but then controlled herself. It would be rude to decline the invitation only because she wanted to spend the day with Alex. She did have the rest of the day free for him of course._

 _"No, I don't. But-"_

 _"Then it's settled." He said with a small smile. "I'll see you at seven?"_

 _"Okay." She said sheepishly. "Thank you for the invitation, Dr Blythe."_

 _She smiled at him but wondered what Alex would say when she told him that she was invited to dine with Gilbert and his parents. He had been a little- sensitive- about the topic lately. She gave an inadvertent sigh which made Gilbert startle._

 _"What is the matter, Winona?" he queried. "Is there any problem?"_

 _She blinked at him nervously._

 _"No, Dr Blythe. I'll be there on time."_

 _"You're dining with Gilbert Blythe?" Alex hissed angrily. "Why?"_

 _Winona took a step back from him in fear._

 _"It's only a formal invitation, Alex." She protested. "Please don't get upset now."_

 _"How can I not be upset?" he muttered, mostly to himself. "I know I don't have any right to tell you whom to be with, but-"_

 _"Then don't." she said firmly. "Gilbert is married and has a child. Do you think I would ever go after him?"_

 _"Well, I know how rebellious you can get when you're challenged!" he blurted._

 _Winona rolled her eyes._

 _"I was sixteen. Everyone is rebellious in that age and I was no different. I have stopped behaving like that now."_

 _Alex ran his hand through his long hair swiftly._

 _"I can't lose you now," he murmured in a husky voice that scared her. "I just- I just can't. If you get m-married to him or anything, I'll kill myself. I won't be-"_

 _She leapt forward to hold his calloused hand in hers and looked at him pleadingly._

 _"You will not think of such a thing again." She said softly._

 _His eyes were tender when he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear._

 _"I can't bear the thought of losing you." He whispered while pulling her mouth closer to his. "I can't let you go now, and I won't. But what if you fall in love with him? He's so much better than me."_

 _She gave a small smile._

 _"No one's better than you." She said, but she didn't know if she was speaking her heart or comforting a disturbed patient. The thought unsettled her and she tried to pull away, but he caressed her cheek and captured her lips with his. Their tongues began a fiery dance as she pushed her hand in his smooth hair and he caught her by the waist to make every distance between them disappear._

 _When they parted from each other, panting, a few minutes had passed. They just stood there in the moonlight, amazed at their boldness and unsure of what the other was feeling._

 _"Where does this leave us, Alex?" she asked breathlessly._

 _He caught her hand eagerly._

 _"Just where we left."_

Author's Note:

Hi everyone! I'm very sorry for prolonging the Anne-Winona meeting for so long, but it does need some sort of a build up. Before Anne faces Gilbert's new life, I wanted to give you guys a glimpse into it. The next chapter would definitely be more eventful and hopefully it'll be out sooner! :)

Thanks for reading this! Please don't forget to leave a kind review in the box below- your reviews keep me going when I'm least inspired to continue with this story. I don't mind if it's short or long- just let me know what you're thinking!

Love,

Ashwini


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

As the train came to a screeching halt, Anne's curious eyes peered out of the window to get a glimpse of the town that she had imagined so often in the past few days. It had always seemed like a magical place to her- an enchanted shore where the impossible magically came into being- back when Gilbert had narrated enthusiastically his childhood visits to his uncle. She felt dreaded to have thought like that. Little did she know that one of her worst nightmares was to become a reality in the same place.

Anne's eyes travelled to Gilbert who had moved to gather their luggage; eyes focused and brow furrowed. How often had she feared that some beautiful woman would bat her eyelashes at Gilbert and would take him away! That bitter thought had engulfed her mind occasionally during their long engagement when Gilbert's letters described any young woman that he had an encounter with, but as she continued to read the loving words that he wrote only for her, the silly thoughts seemed to vanish from her mind. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she thought he would actually marry someone else.

 _What if she is extremely good-looking?_ She wondered. _What if she has raven hair and dark eyes that she had dreamt of?_

She shook her head to push these childish thoughts away as Gilbert lead her towards the platform silently. His shoulders hunched and walk tense; she could almost sense the nervousness that he felt. He _had_ suffered a lot in her absence, she agreed despite being a little mad at him. She could imagine what pain he must have gone through thinking that she had died- she remembered how terrible the possibility of losing him had been when they were young and she had foolishly misread her feelings for Gilbert.

 _He doesn't love her._ She assured herself.

Hearing this from Gilbert had relieved her to a great extent. The reality still seemed pretty unbearable to her- some other woman taking care of him, cooking for him, keeping the house for him and sharing a house with him… But she understood that he had done it because James needed a mother and he believed that she was no more. She doubted he had any _husbandly relations_ with her. In fact she was quite sure that he didn't. He would never do that, at least, not so soon.

Gilbert stepped onto the platform holding their luggage gingerly and she followed him with a thumping heart. She noticed him scanning the crowd and wondered if _she_ would be there to pick him up. Would James come with her? She clutched her hands tightly into fists before tapping Gilbert lightly on the shoulder.

"Are we expecting anyone to pick us up?" she asked slowly.

Gilbert opened his mouth to answer, but was silenced by a loud cry.

"Dr Blythe!"

Gilbert turned swiftly as a young boy of approximately eighteen sprinted towards them with great enthusiasm that one would rarely show at a train station.

"Joshua!" Gilbert greeted him delightfully. "What brings you here today?"

Joshua grinned at them while tipping his hat.

"I'm honored to be here today, Dr Blythe."

"Really?" Gilbert smirked. "May I enquire why?"

"I've been assigned with the job to pick you up and drop you safely at your doorstep." He said with utmost dedication.

Gilbert laughed.

"Very well, Joshua. Shall we get going?"

Anne tried to suppress a giggle as Joshua lead them towards the carriage like Gilbert was a royalty and climbed in after him.

Gilbert leaned in closer to whisper in her ear as Joshua busied himself with the horses.

"I treated his nasty cough and now he thinks I'm the reflection of God."

Anne laughed as silently as she could and nudged him into the ribs.

"I'm enjoying it Dr Blythe." She teased and Gilbert looked pleasantly surprised that she was in such good spirits. Unfortunately, the light-hearted mood was only momentary.

"Mrs. Blythe visited yesterday morning along with Master Blythe to ask if I would give you a ride home." Joshua informed proudly as he jumped in, which made Anne's amused smile disappear. She saw Gilbert tense from the corner of her eyes and busied herself in adjusting her skirts with utmost concentration. "Is she doing well, Dr Blythe? Looked quite pale if you ask me."

"She is still recovering, Josh." Gilbert said gingerly. "Did she walk all the way down to your house?"

"I believe so, Dr Blythe." Joshua shook his head. " And Master Blythe must have made her run half the way; she was nearly out of breath by the time they arrived. She shouldn't do that often in my opinion."

"She shouldn't do that at all." Gilbert said gravely. "No matter what I tell her, she wouldn't take her health seriously. She says the chores keep her from getting bored in bed."

"Is that why we have her friend visiting?" he asked cheerfully with a courteous nod at Anne. "To keep her company?"

Gilbert shifted uncomfortably in his seat and loosened his tie a little.

"Ahem- umm- yes." He said throatily.

Anne sighed and concentrated on the splendid view around them. Why did his new wife need rest? Was she sick?

She had never been more curious.

* * *

Before Anne could cross the doorstep of Gilbert's house, James almost knocked her down by jumping into her arms fervently. Gilbert, who was less than a foot away, had to drop their bags to steady Anne from falling due to James's weight.

"Watch out, lad!" he scolded, but his comment was mostly ignored. Anne was already kneeling on the floor, clutching his red head tightly to her bosom and sobbing hard. James's eyes were huge with confusion as he hugged her back with his tiny hand.

"Why are you crying, Mother?" he asked, his voice muffled due to the embrace.

Anne released him to wipe her eyes with the back of her hand and stroked his face tenderly with her slender fingers.

"I am just happy that I'm here with you, darling." She said softly. "I missed you. I missed you more than I can explain."

"Well, I missed you real bad too." James said with a smile. "But I wouldn't have if you had written to me like my Grandmother does."

"I'm terribly sorry that I didn't, darling." Anne said tearfully. "Will you forgive me?"

"I guess I will." He shrugged and patted her on the head. "I didn't write to you either."

Anne smiled and took out her handkerchief to wipe her face.

"James, at least let her come in!" a voice came from the other side of the room and Anne looked up, her face startled.

"Sorry, Mother." James grinned while scratching the back of his head. "Come in."

He nudged her to get up, but Anne's eyes were fixed on the lady who stood in the living room rather awkwardly. Gilbert cleared his throat as she walked towards them.

"Anne, um, this is Winona." He said in a low voice.

Anne held her skirts tightly as she arose from the floor and fixed her face in a careful smile.

"Winona, meet Anne." He said as they nodded at each other.

A painful silence stretched between them as they looked at each other for the first time, both unsure of how to react.

She was quite tall, with dark brown hair and matching eyes. Her figure wasn't as slim as Anne's, but she wasn't fat either. Her attire and hair were simple, but there was a fierceness in her personality that made her look endearing.

"Hello." She said cordially.

"Please come in." Winona urged her, trying to make the situation less awkward. "Both of you must be tired."

Anne nodded and followed her inside the house. James held her hand tightly as she walked and showed her to the living room couch. She settled down, her eyes looking around. There was nothing fancy about the house- the furniture was simple and everything was neat and clean. There were no vases or flowers there nor any books. A few painting graced the walls, but she wasn't sure if she liked the décor.

Gilbert slid down on the armchair across her and leaned his head on its back.

"Any calls?" He asked Winona who was busy handing them water.

"Patients were calling all day, Gilbert." She said sincerely. "Thankfully, there were no emergencies, but there are a few cases of influenza in the fishing village. I've only advised bed rest and fluid intake till you get here."

Gilbert nodded in satisfaction.

"That would be enough, I think. I would make a trip up there as soon as possible." He said thoughtfully.

"You can do it tomorrow." She said. "After we- uh- sort the situation out."

James ran towards her as she sat down on the couch.

"When are we going to take Mother to the shore?" he asked eagerly.

Winona gave him an affectionate smile.

"She must be tired from the long journey. Let her rest for a while and you can take her there tomorrow." She answered. "Why don't you show her the flowers that you and I planted last month?"

James shook his head.

"No! I want to take her to see the baby."

There was a stony silence in the room following his declaration. Winona's questioning eyes sought Gilbert's and he shook his head.

"The- the baby?" Anne stammered and glanced at James who was grinning at her.

"Yes! We have a baby now." He told her proudly. "Her name is Nora and Dad said that she is my sister."

Anne's eyes were wide as she looked from Winona to Gilbert drearily.

"Anne we need to talk about that." Gilbert said stonily and Winona nodded stonily.

"Is she- your daughter?" Anne asked shakily, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the answer. Winona and Gilbert looked at each other in dread.

"She is." Winona said weakly.

And Anne felt her whole world crashing around her.

* * *

 _Flashback_

 _Cora Blythe stared absently outside the kitchen window, her attention momentarily driven from cooking the dinner. The conversation that she had had with Mrs. Elliot that morning had unsettled her to a great extent and she had been thinking about it ever since she had left. She moved her glance a little as she saw her son walking down the road towards the house, nodding as Winona Smith chatted animatedly beside him. Though he did not look as happy as he used to look before, he seemed to enjoy her company._

 _She rubbed her temple slowly with her fingers as she observed both of them with curiosity._

"The friendship that your son has developed with Winona Smith is the talk of the town." _Mrs. Elliot had said casually, but her eyes hinting a genuine spark of hope._ "It's wonderful that they are friendly, isn't it? Poor doctor is no doubt miserable and our girl Winona has seen her share of problems in life. It always help when you have someone to share." _She had remarked cautiously._

 _As Cora looked at them talking comfortably by the gate, she failed to see anything but friendship through their behavior with each other. She was sure Gilbert wouldn't be able to care for anyone else; at least not so soon. Even she hadn't been able to accept the fact that her daughter-in-law had really left, she simply couldn't imagine her son moving on. He had loved her since he was only a child. But would it be possible for him to make a compromise for his child's future? She had been worried about James's upbringing ever since she had seen how lonely he had become in Four Winds. Would Gilbert consider getting married again?_

 _"What's bothering you, love?" a deep voice made her turn._

 _John Blythe walked in to stand beside her and glanced out of the window to see what she was looking at. He huffed when he saw his son standing there talking sincerely to Winona and turned to her imploringly._

 _"You're not thinking about what Mrs. Elliot said, are you?" he queried._

 _Cora sighed and eyed him sadly._

 _"I can't get it out of my head." She muttered. "Do you think it's a terrible idea that he gets married to her?"_

 _John folded his hands warily._

 _"We can't force him into getting married." He opinioned. "I do not think he loves her."_

 _"Not all marriages are based on love, John." Cora defended. "Theirs can be based on friendship and compromise. We can't ignore the fact that James needs someone to look after him. My heart breaks to see that child. I'd take him home in a heartbeat but the poor soul wants his father too."_

 _John looked at her with shock._

 _"Are you suggesting that we ask him to marry her for James? Cora, at least give our boy some time."_

 _"There's no time to lose." She muttered. "Winona is young and good looking. I'm sure many men are pining for her. Especially that long haired fellow who visits Gilbert often- he walks her home sometimes in the evening too."_

 _"But Cora-"_

 _"James loves Winona." She pointed out. "Look how comfortable they are together! Gilbert has no time to spend with James, but she does. She plays with him, makes him eat dinner when he's cranky and cared for him like a mother when he was sick. And what bad it would do to Gilbert? He surely wouldn't be able to love anyone as much as he loved Anne, but he would have a good friend by his side."_

 _John shook his head._

 _"Gilbert might be ready to settle for this, Cora." He said firmly. "But it's not fair for her. She has the right to marry someone for love."_

 _Cora sighed._

 _"I guess you are right." She said. "But what if the person that she loves is our son?"_

 _"Then it won't be such a bad idea." He agreed with a thoughtful nod._

 _"I'll have to find out." She said with determination._

* * *

Author's Note:

Sorry for the delay, everyone! :( I just cannot find enough time to write these days due to studies and internship. Would it be okay if I post shorter chapters more often? Or is the current system working for you? Please let me know through reviews!

Thank you all for reading, reviewing, following and adding this story to your favorites! I'm grateful for each one of those. :)

Love,

Ashwini


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Gilbert caught Anne by the arm before she succeeded in storming out of the front door. He saw her eyes burning with fury as she tried to free herself from his grasp.

"Anne, wait!" he exclaimed, struggling to keep holding on to her. "Please, listen to me!"

"Why should I?" She questioned angrily. "First you tell me that you moved to a faraway harbor, then you said that you're married and now I find out that you have a daughter! I'm scared of talking to you, Gilbert. I won't- I won't be able to bear another blow!" Her voice cracked.

"I can explain this, Anne. Please, let me." he pleaded. "Nora _is_ my child in a way but-"

She snatched her arm away from his grip and rubbed it furiously.

"Do not talk to me, Gilbert Blythe!" she said shakily. "I tried my best to forgive you for getting married because James needed a mother and I do understand that. But I refuse to make peace with the fact that you went along to- to- have relations with her only two months after I supposedly died. I can't!"

His heart dropped as he saw her eyes brimming with tears.

"Anne, she's- it's not like you think!" he protested and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Look, I'll tell you everything. I swear. No more secrets; just listen to me once."

"It's not just that!" she said angrily. "I was still hoping that you would come back to me once you find a good place for her to go but now- I can't ask you to leave a baby like that, I can't!"

"Anne, listen to me." Gilbert tried to put his hands on her shoulders, which she shrugged away. "I completely understand what you are going through. But trust me- we're not getting out of this mess until we talk to each other. Any miscommunication can be disastrous."

When Anne looked up to him her eyes were on fire.

"Just answer one question, Gilbert." She said icily. "I need to know only one thing. Is she your daughter or not?"

Gilbert pursed his lips.

"Yes and no." he said slowly, his eyes focused onto hers.

"What?" Anne cried in disbelief.

Gilbert took a deep breath and looked away.

" _Biologically_ speaking, I'm not her father." He explained patiently. "But since I have married Winona, I am."

Anne blinked in confusion.

"You're not making any sense." She said. "She's not your daughter biologically? Was Winona married before?"

Gilbert shook his head.

"She wasn't." he said in a low voice.

Anne's eyes lit up in realization.

"Did you marry her to protect her dignity?" she asked, her eyebrows rose.

"Well, that was one of the reasons, yes." He nodded. "But mostly I did it because it happened because of me. Her fiancé left her because- because of something that I did. I'll tell you everything soon. Trust me just one more time."

"Alright." She said breathlessly. "I'll stay here. You go talk to her."

Gilbert looked visually relieved as he led her back in.

"Will you stay with James while we talk?" he asked. "It's better if he doesn't hear anything."

Anne nodded reluctantly, her eyes unsure.

Winona flung the door closed behind her as soon as she and Gilbert reached their room. Her eyes were stormy as she turned to him.

"You didn't tell her about Nora?"

Gilbert ran a hand through his hair. He did not know if he would be able to handle the rage of two really fiery women in a row.

"I didn't do it because I wanted to talk to you first." He breathed. "We had mutually agreed that we wouldn't tell how Nora was born to anyone and I wanted to respect that promise."

Winona took a deep breath and tried to keep herself calm.

"You can tell her." She muttered. "You can tell her what happened back then. She deserves to know everything."

"Alright." Gilbert spoke quietly.

Winona looked up to him a little fearfully.

"How are we going to get out of this?" she whispered. "You can't leave, Anne- Where are me and Nora going to go?"

"Winona, I'm not going to throw the two of you out on the street." He said firmly. "Biology aside, I _am_ Nora's father. I agreed to be that, willingly so. And I am your husband too."

"You're as moral as ever, Gilbert Blythe." Winona sighed. "But in the long run, your words lack practicality. I can't ask you to leave your wife and son and be with us here. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I ever do that. I've seen my parents struggle in an unhappy marriage and believe me, it doesn't work."

Gilbert closed his eyes.

"There has to be a way out." He muttered and clenched his fists.

"There is." Winona spoke firmly, her eyes burning with determination. "Let me go, Gilbert."

Gilbert's eyes shot open at her words.

"What? Where will you go?"

"I'll take up a nursing course somewhere on the Island." She said stonily. "I've been thinking about the possibilities of my future ever since I found out that Anne was coming and I realized that I might enjoy being a nurse."

"How are you going to take care of a child?" he asked, aghast. "How will you pay for the course? You still have to pay your mother's debt. And what are you going to tell them about Nora? That your husband married you and left you after his first wife came back into the picture?"

Winona smiled bitterly.

"I'll tell them she's Alex's daughter." She muttered.

Gilbert's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"You can't do that." He said, shocked. "Your reputation-"

"I don't care about it anymore." She muttered. "People have already suspected that I was pregnant before getting married anyway. They only think that you are the father. Is that going to make much of a difference that it was Alex instead?"

"Then I'll go back to Avonlea with Anne." He said firmly. "Your whole life is here, I can't ask you to give that up. You and Nora can live here and I'll pay for all your expenses."

"Don't be silly, Gilbert. I know how your practice was in Avonlea. Eventually you will have more kids with Anne. Then we'll be just a burden to you." She pointed out. "This won't work at all. And it will ruin your reputation in Four Winds."

Gilbert sighed.

"Are we going to be stuck this situation forever?"

"No, we can figure this out." She assured. "The only thing that we need is time. Give me some time until I figure out what to do with me and my daughter's life. I will not stand between the two of you, I promise. And while I do that, there are some issues which you can pay attention to."

"What?" he asked, surprised.

"What kept you and Anne apart from each other? Rather, _who_ did?"

* * *

 ** _Flashback_**

 _Winona hummed in her sleep, irritated as the brightness of the morning tried to wake her up. She tried to shield her face with the palm of her hand, but before she could block the light properly, someone caught her hand and pulled her over to the other side of the bed._

 _Her lips curved into a smile as she felt her cheek resting against Alex's strong chest. She opened her eyes gently to find him looking down at her with affection._

 _"What?" she asked, yawning._

 _Alex grinned and stroked her naked form playfully._

 _"I still can't believe this is real." He said. "Is it?"_

 _Winona pinched him hard on the arm._

 _"Ouch!" he exclaimed._

 _She laughed as he rolled her over so that she was on her back and him on top of her._

 _"Someone is in a pretty good mood, huh?" he asked and gave her a quick kiss._

 _"Mm hmm." She said sheepishly. "The credit goes to you, mister."_

 _"I agree with that." He smiled. "It broke my heart to see you in pain last night, Winona. I realized that I never want to see that look on your face again. I am so glad you chose to come to me."_

 _"I felt like I had nowhere to go." She muttered, her laughter disappearing quickly. "I felt so lonely after he started yelling at me like-"_

 _"Don't talk about him," Alex said sincerely. "Forget that he's even related to you! Tell me you'll never see him again."_

 _"He's my father, Alex!" she sighed. "I can't do that."_

 _"But you should!" he exclaimed. "I remember that he used to be affectionate to you when you were younger. I can't believe he acts like that now. It's like he doesn't even care about you anymore."_

 _Winona pursed her lips._

 _"I should have known better. I shouldn't have asked for his help to pay off Mother's debts." She muttered. "He just flips out whenever I mention her. I don't know why he has started behaving like this after her death. Do you think he- learned something about her that he didn't know before?"_

 _Alex shrugged and started kissing her neck._

 _"Let's not talk about him." He said. "My blood boils when I think of him. How could he ask you to get out of his house when it was so late? What if you hadn't got here on time?"_

 _"Let it be, Alex." She muttered. "Let's talk about something else. What do you feel like talking?"_

 _"Our future." He said, resting his head against her collarbone. She looked down at him in surprise._

 _"The future?" she asked, nervously._

 _"We have to think about the possible consequences of what happened between us." He said. "You might get pregnant, Winona."_

 _"You're right." She said slowly, her brow creased. "I didn't intend this to happen. I was in need of comfort and-"_

 _"It's okay." He assured her and looked into her eyes. "We'll get married as soon as possible. I hadn't told you this before, but my book has been picked up by a publisher."_

 _She looked at him with surprise._

 _"You heard it right. He loved my manuscript and he has invited me to Charlottetown for further discussion. Once the deal gets signed, we can get married without any problem."_

 _"Alex, that's- that's incredible!" she exclaimed._

 _"I know it is." He said cheerfully. "I love you, Winona."_

 _"I love you too." She said it back a little hesitantly._

 _It was true, she was sure about that. But she still felt unsure about getting married to him._

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Tada! Gilbert is not Nora's father!_

 _Now the flashbacks are going to be focused on the series of events that lead to Gilbert and Winona's marriage. I hope you have noticed that Gilbert told Anne that he married Winona because it was his fault that Alex left her. I'm thinking of writing two chapters focusing on the flashback part only. What do you guys think?_

 _Thank you so much for every follow, favourite, review and PM that you have given me! :D I love all of you so much!_

 _Ashwini :)_


	15. Chapter 15

_Flashback_

 _Gilbert Blythe stared anxiously at the moving train long after James's tiny hand had disappeared from sight. He found it impossible to forget his cheerful little face as he waved his hand at him enthusiastically. It made him feel guiltier than ever for sending him with his parents for Christmas. When the train became nothing but a small dot in the distance he tore his gaze away from it and pushed his hands deep in his pockets._

 _Winona lightly placed her hand on his shoulder. He jumped slightly, having forgotten that she was even there and looked sideways at her._

 _"Don't worry about him." She said reassuringly, brushing some snow off her coat. "He's going to be just fine without you."_

 _Gilbert laughed bitterly._

 _"Perhaps I'm more concerned about how I'm going to do without him."_

 _Winona shook her head exasperatedly._

 _"Finding things to worry over seems to be your talent, Gilbert." She said jokingly. "As far as I know, your mother took him home because you said that you could use some time alone."_

 _Gilbert adjusted his hat and felt amused over Winona's innocence. He was pretty sure his mother had taken James home because he wanted them to spend some time alone with each other._

 _"But should I have sent my own son away during Christmas?" he said, trying to forget that subject. "You are supposed to spend this time with family, right?"_

 _"He is with his grandparents." She replied. "Technically he is with family. And you would've gone with him if Mrs. Boulter's surgery wasn't around the corner."_

 _Gilbert swallowed hard and decided not to stretch the subject further. How would she react if he told her that there was no surgery keeping him busy?_

 _"Shall we get going?" He asked stiffly._

 _As they started walking through the snow dusted streets of Four Winds, Gilbert looked sideways at Winona who was deep in thought, her brow furrowed. It made him feel uncomfortable that they had a long walk ahead as his mind drifted towards the conversation that he had had with his mother before they left for Avonlea._

 _Poor Winona had no idea that his mother was dreaming of getting her married to him. He had literally racked his brains over this topic in the past two three days but he hadn't reached a conclusion yet. It was crystal clear to him that he didn't want to think of anyone else as his wife other than Anne, but his heart clenched whenever he thought about James. With the response Gilbert was getting, he was set to be the busiest doctor on the harbour sooner than he liked to admit. Would he have enough time to look after James? Leaving him with a housekeeper all day long did not seem acceptable to him. He had grown up in her mother's shadow and he knew how important it was to have family around. James didn't have any siblings either. Was he making his son lonely for his own stubbornness?_

 _"Is everything alright?"_

 _He snapped out of his thoughts to look at Winona. She was looking up at him with concern as she walked._

 _"Oh, um, yes." He replies absently._

 _"What's wrong?" She asked. "Talk to me. You look genuinely disturbed."_

 _He let out a long sigh. Putting off the conversation was not going soothe his mind anyways._

 _"They want me to get married again." He said daringly. "I mean my parents and Marilla."_

 _Winona gave a small smile._

 _"I understand." She said. "You loved your wife too much to do that right?"_

 _"I still do." He said huskily and tried to regain some composure. He felt himself lose the nerve to bring the topic with her. He tried to wear a façade of nonchalance as he looked back at her. "Well enough about my woes and worries. How have you been? How are holidays going?"_

 _"Perfect!" She said sarcastically, perhaps having sensed the sudden change of topic. "I couldn't save enough to pay off my mother's debt and then my father yelling at me to leave his house was just the cherry on top."_

 _He raised his eyebrows._

 _"Your father said that?"_

 _She nodded, her eyes icy as she looked ahead to avoid his concerned gaze._

 _"Why?" He asked flabbergasted. "I mean if you're comfortable enough to say."_

 _She waved her hand in the air._

 _"I'd rather not talk about it." She said. "There's something else I've been meaning to discuss with you." She looked at him with a shyness that he had never seen before and it surprised him to no extent._

 _"Go ahead." He said._

 _"I need a medical advice." She hesitated before speaking further._

 _"Alright." He said. "About what?"_

 _"About pregnancy." She said slowly._

 _Gilbert raised his eyebrows._

 _"Who is-"_

 _His sentence was cut short as Winona froze as she saw the person walking up the lane towards them, hands deep in pockets of a brown overcoat wrapped in an old scarf._

 _"Uh oh." Winona muttered._

 _"What?" Gilbert asked, surprised. "Isn't that your friend Alex?"_

 _Before she could answer, a shivering Alex Witherspoon approached them with a skeptical look, his long hair peeking from his brown moth eaten scarf._

 _"Good evening, Mr. Witherspoon." Gilbert said courteously._

 _Alex wished him a good evening without taking his eyes off Winona._

 _"Where are you going?" He asked staring at her red face._

 _"Back home." She muttered. "We went to drop James to the station."_

 _"Why?"_

 _Gilbert did not like the possessive tone that he used while addressing Winona. When he saw her take a step away from him, he cleared his throat rather loudly._

 _"My son is quite fond of her." He said pointedly while Alex gave him a cold look. "They get along well."_

 _"Just like the two of you do."_

 _Winona sighed and shook her head._

 _"I'll see you later, Alex." She said a little weakly and pushed past him. Gilbert slightly turned his head to look at a devastated Alex standing there in the middle of the snow._

 _"What did just happen?" He asked confused._

 _Winona sighed._

 _"Let's say he is a little jealous of you." She explained. "Because we spend so much time together. No matter what I do he still believes there's something going on between us."_

 _Gilbert purses his lips._

 _"Is He your- I mean are you two-"_

 _Winona let out another sigh._

 _"I don't know what we are yet." She said. "But he doesn't seem to be the ideal husband does he?"_

 _Gilbert didn't say anything but gave her an assuring look._

 _"I'll figure it out soon." She said firmly._

 _"What were you saying before he came?" Gilbert asked curiously. "What question did you have about pregnancy?"_

 _Winona blinked at him nervously._

 _"One of my friends-uh wanted to know- umm something about it." She muttered hurriedly. "But it can wait. I'll just see you around Gilbert!"_

 _He looked at her puzzled as she disappeared onto the road that lead to her home and turned away to head to his own empty place._

* * *

 _Winona pushed Alex away as he tried to embrace her when she answered the door and blocked his way by standing firmly in the door._

 _"Don't talk to me!" she hissed. "Just get out of here!"_

 _Alex sighed and pushed some hair out of his face._

 _"Look, Winona, I'm here to apologize." He said sincerely._

 _"I can't keep forgiving you like this." she said angrily. "Alex, this insecurity is getting out of hand. A woman would think thousand times before having such intimate relations with a man before marriage. I did that with you and you keep questioning my loyalty? How am I supposed to make peace with that?"_

 _"Look, I got a little carried away." He huffed. "Dr Blythe seems like the man every woman would dream of marrying while I am-"he paused to take a long breath and looked at her pleadingly. "But I promise I won't to it anymore. We can get married as soon as I get my meeting done with the publisher in Charlottetown. In fact I am leaving tomorrow morning."_

 _Winona blinked indecisively._

 _"Alex, I think we shouldn't be hurrying into marriage." She said slowly, fearing his reaction. "I cannot leave this town until I pay off everyone that lent money for my mother's illness and till then I'll have to keep working."_

 _"Winona, but what if you're pregnant?" he questioned._

 _"Look, I've heard Gilbert consult tons of patients about this." She explained eagerly. "It is pretty difficult to get pregnant when it's the first time. It can take months for some people, even years."_

 _Alex's face was icy when she looked at him._

 _"Do you not want to marry me, Winona?" he asked in a low voice. "Did that night mean nothing to you? Was I just a source of pleasure and comfort for you?"_

 _Winona caught her head in her hands._

 _"I never said that." She said. "But you're possessive, Alex. And I don't know what you have been up to for all these years. How can I just get married to you when I feel like I hardly know you anymore?"_

 _Alex took a step back._

 _"I get it." He said through gritted teeth. "I get that you don't want to marry me and I agree that your reasons seem practical enough. At least give me a chance, Winona. Please?'_

 _"What do you mean by a chance?"_

 _"Let me go to Charlottetown and I'll prove that I can be worthy of you." He said. "I'll come back to you when I've become something. I'll work for you. But before I do that, I have to know that a part of you still wants me."_

 _Winona cupped his cheek, her mind still in confusion._

 _"I love you, Alex." She said. "I really do. If you work on yourself, I might be able to marry you."_

 _"Then it's a deal." He said tenderly and ran back towards the road through the thick cover of snow, his long hair billowing in the winter wind._

* * *

 _Gilbert slumped down in his armchair before the fire, his third glass of scotch in his hand. He hadn't intended to resort to drinking, but the empty house seemed to unsettle him in a strange way._

 _Ever since- she went- he had never been truly alone. Someone was always there- caring for him, tending to him, asking if he was fine… In the privacy of his home, there was always James, seeking comfort in his presence and he had to be strong for him. If he was breathing till that day, it was for James and his parents, but there would always be moments where he wanted run away from all of them._

 _He had found pleasure in solitude whenever he went to his nighttime strolls even though he knew Marilla worried about him until he came back. Ever since she had left, he had restrained himself from leaving James alone in the house and solitude had become a luxury. That was partly why he decided to stay in Four Winds alone for Christmas._

 _He sighed and leaned back in his chair. He probably would have treasured this time, if only his mother hadn't left him in such a state of dilemma. He drowned his glass in one go, squinting as the liquid burned against his throat._

 _It had given him a bit of relief when he had sensed that Winona probably loved Alex Witherspoon, but he didn't think the problem ended there. In the time coming, he would have to make this decision. Should he pressure himself into marrying someone that he did not love?_

 _Despite himself, he thought with a pang that it would have been better if he could marry Winona. He knew he wouldn't be able to love her, or give her Anne's place, but at least she was a friend and James loved her. She seemed to understand Gilbert in a way that no one had, perhaps she was just really good at understanding people. Marilla and his mother found her smart and engaging as well._

 _But again, he didn't think it would be fair for her. She was a lovely person and deserved to find a husband who loved her, cherished her. He didn't wish her to have a compromised marriage._

 _He got up to pour himself another glass and emptied it just as quickly. The bottle was half empty now and he tried to remember how many he had in the house. He remembered getting two as a gift from Parker but one of them was almost finished by his father and the doctors he had invited for dinner the week before. He groaned as he realized that there was no more alcohol left and slumped onto a chair._

 _Anne's dead. I'm a terrible parent. My family thinks I should get married._

 _He ran a hand through his curly locks, pulling at them with frustration. Would this struggle ever end? He wanted to go to sleep and never wake up. He poured the rest of the scotch in his glass and drank it, trying to make everything disappear from his head._

 _He closed his eyes as he felt the alcohol working on his limbs. He stretched himself onto the floor and wondered whether he should sleep there or go out for his usual nighttime walk._

* * *

 _Hello all! I hope you enjoy the flashback chapters! I'm trying to fit everything into two chapters but I might end up writing three._

 _Anyways, let me know your thoughts on this one and what you think is going to happen next._

 _Love you all! Thank you so much for supporting me and my story._

Ashwini


	16. Chapter 16

_Chapter Sixteen_

 _Flashback_

 _Winona squinted in the inky darkness of the night to make sure that her eyes weren't playing any tricks on her and gasped when she saw that indeed there was a man sitting there, his head resting against the half built stone wall behind her house. She carefully dug her boots into the snow covered path that led towards the wall, trying to make as little noise as possible. She shuffled through the snow cautiously, her eyes widened and heart beating fast. She knew it wasn't Alex because she had just seen him in the church and had hurried home earlier when everyone assumed that a storm was coming. As she made her way closer to the wall, she blinked through the snowflakes falling around her and put a hand over her mouth to stifle a cry of surprise._

 _She couldn't believe Gilbert Blythe was fast asleep in the snow with only a coat on to keep him warm, slumped against the lonely wall on Christmas Eve. She hurried through the snow and knelt down to check his breath and pulse. His body was shivering but he was definitely breathing. She couldn't figure out if he was unconscious or had merely fallen asleep._

 _"Gilbert?" she croaked and he stirred a little. She put a hand lightly on his shoulder and he opened his eyes ever so slightly. "Gilbert, can you hear me?"_

 _He mumbled some odd syllables under his breath._

 _Winona looked around helplessly, her hand still awkwardly clutching at Gilbert's shoulder. There was no one in sight and Gilbert's house was at least half a mile from there. She couldn't figure out how he had ended up there, as if disposed there by unseen hands. A speculation made her look at him sharply. Had he been drinking?_

 _She scanned the snow around him eagerly and wasn't surprised when she found a bottle lying there beside him, empty and harmless._

 _She rubbed her forehead with her hands and eyed him nervously. She caught him by both the shoulders and shook rather harshly._

 _"Gilbert, wake up!" she cried and his eyes shot open, darting towards her unfocusedly. "Come on, we need to get you home as soon as possible." She whispered, hoping that he was sane enough to understand what she was saying._

 _But her hopes were dashed when he opened his eyes only to grin ridiculously at her._

 _"Who are you?" he asked pleasantly and she gave a long sigh. "That is a nice dress that you have."_

 _Winona couldn't help but roll her eyes and groaned. It seemed impossible that this was the man who sinisterly sat behind his desk all day long, buried behind files and papers. She wondered if he was flirting with her and frowned at him._

 _"What?" she said helplessly._

 _"You look like someone I know." He said slowly, the smile disappearing on his face replaced by a painful look. "Anne- lovely Anne." He smiled hollowly._

 _"I look like Anne?" she said suspiciously._

 _"No you don't. What was I thinking…" he sighed dramatically and pulled at his hair roughly. "You have a dress like her."_

 _Winona huffed and looked down at the new apple green dress that she had on inadvertently._

 _"Gilbert, can you stand up?" she asked. "Let me take you home."_

 _"Will she be there?" he asked hopefully and she pursed her lips._

 _"Yes." She said deliberately, willing to do anything to make him at least attempt to rise. The storm was coming that night and she couldn't leave him there. And she was pretty sure that it was an impossible task for her to force him to rise._

 _"Alright." He said happily and made an attempt to get up. But he toppled over even as she tried to hold him by the arm._

 _"Oh, dear God, how much have you drank!" she exclaimed uneasily._

 _He smiled._

 _"Three bottles." He mumbled. "Man, this is cold-"_

 _"Gilbert, you're shivering!" she exclaimed. "Now, get up!"_

 _She braced herself against the wall and with all her might, dragged him to his feet. He got up with a groan but leaned instantly against her shoulder, which made her lose balance. Breathing heavily, she realized that there was no way she could walk all the way towards his home with him braced against her shoulder. Shoving propriety aside, she glanced at her own house that stood almost fifty steps away and sighed in defeat._

 _"Alright, now try to walk."_

 _She saw as he struggled to set one foot after the other and kept her hold on him tight and careful. As she stopped for a moment to unlock her front door, he stared at her with a frown, trying to recognize. Even if he were sober, it would have been very difficult to make out her features against the darkness. She pushed the door open and held out her gloved hand that he took rather reluctantly._

 _As they stumbled into the house together, Winona rested against the wall, considering their possible sleeping arrangements. With slight uneasiness she realized that although her small house did have a tiny spare room, she hadn't bothered to spend money on buying a bed for that. With an exasperated look at the half awake Gilbert looking around with unfocused eyes, she slowly began to lead him towards her own bedroom. What choice did she have?_

 _All propriety aside, she gently let him fall against the mattress and stepped back. Even though he was drunk, Gilbert quickly adjusted his weary body on the bed and soon fell asleep. Winona bent down to take off his wet shoes from his feet and he hummed comfortably as she slid his feet under the warm covers._

 _It's okay. Think of him as a patient. She breathed deeply, trying to get rid of the discomfort that she felt at seeing him so vulnerable before her._

 _Minutes later, he was sprawled on her bed, snoring and unaware of his surroundings as she fretted across the room nervously. As awkward as the situation was, she couldn't figure out why he had intoxicated himself and how he had ended up slumped against the drystone wall on Christmas Eve. A few minutes later, she heard him groan and ran towards the bed, leaning over him._

 _"Gilbert?" she said anxiously. "Are you alright?"_

 _He opened his eyes with great effort and soon they focused on her face in candlelight. A frown formed on his face as he blinked. He tried to speak, but shook his head in defeat after a long moment passed in vain attempts. Sobriety was invading his state of oblivion, recognition was taking place. After another moment, his eyes were wide open as he realized who she was._

 _"But how- how did you- where did you-" he fumbled for words as she flopped down on the bed beside him._

 _"It's okay, Gilbert." She said, trying to sound calm._

 _He caught his head between his hands._

 _"God, what have I done?" he muttered as he began to realize what had happened. Winona sighed and looked at him, her eyes softened, as he made a failed attempt to rise from the bed._

 _"Gilbert, you're not fully yourself yet." She said. "Don't even think about going back. The storm has begun."_

 _He groaned once again and tried and failed to get up._

 _"You can sleep here." She said slowly. "I'll wake you up before dawn so we can get you back before anyone notices."_

 _He sighed and mumbled something that seemed like an apology._

 _"It's okay." She assured. "Now go back to sleep."_

 _His eyes were closed and soon his breath evened out._

 _She sighed as she looked around. She had no option but to stay up all night. What a lovely Christmas! She thought sarcastically._

 _She tried her best not to sleep- she strained her eyes against the dark to read and even tried to get up to be in the living room. But every time she moved, Gilbert stirred and started mumbling incoherently in his sleep, Anne's name occasionally slipping his mouth and soon she gave up trying to leave the room. She leaned against the headboard after a while, thinking that she would rest her eyes for only a few minutes._

 _But exhaustion took over her willpower and soon she was sprawled on the bed beside him, their hands resting merely inches away from each other._

* * *

 _When sunlight sneaked through bedroom window, Winona groaned at the realization that hit her. She had slept in the same bed as Gilbert! Thinking that she must leave before he woke up and things got complicated, she pushed herself up on the bed and looked around._

 _The sun was bright and it was definitely well past dawn. Gilbert was still asleep but was stirring. She decided to make some tea and pushed the door open to find-_

 _"Alex!" she exclaimed as she saw him pacing the living room in fury. "What are you-"_

 _"Oh, should I have not come?" he said in mock concern. "Should I have left the two of you alone?"_

 _Winona sighed and caught her head in her hands._

 _"Oh no-" she muttered. "Alex, please don't misunderstand." She pleaded. "It was-"_

 _"I can't even look at you right now." He said, disgusted and began to make his way to the door._

 _"Alex, wait!" she said helplessly and blocked his way with eagerness. "It isn't what it looks like. I found him in the garden last night- he was drunk and there was a storm. That is why I brought him here."_

 _Alex laughed bitterly._

 _"At least you could have thought of a better excuse!" he scoffed. "Am I supposed to believe that he was drunk and casually lying around in your garden? I came here to say goodbye to you and I let myself in because I was worried. You had left the front door unlocked. I feared for your safety but now it seems like you left it open because of the two of you were in a hurry it seems-"_

 _"Alex!" she cried._

 _"Oh, you're angry now, are you?" he fumed. "Let me make this easier for you. I'll just walk away. It's my mistake that I trusted you despite the doubts I had about the two of you."_

 _And before she could stop him, he had sprinted halfway towards the gate and didn't bother to look back. Winona wanted to run after him, but she couldn't leave Gilbert there. He could wake up and come out of the house. People would see him and there would be no way to stop the gossip. She slumped against the door and closed her eyes. For the first time in her life, she wondered if she could really blame Alex for leaving her._

* * *

 _Author's Note:_

 _Thanks for reading, guys! I'm terribly sorry for being such an inconsistent updater. I was just caught up with real life for the last ten-twenty days. However, here I am with a brand new chapter, better late than never right? Let me know what you think about this flashback. :)_

 _Love,_

 _Ashwini_


	17. Chapter 17

Labyrinthine Seventeen

Owen Ford walked beside Rupert in confusion as they kept passing by years old graves and tombstones. He looked around the graveyard skeptically and gave the excited looking publisher a glare.

"You made me miss my train to bring me to this graveyard?" Owen said in disbelief.

"I promise you, Ford, this is going to be worth it." Rupert assured him absently, his eyes moving around as if looking for something. "I'm sorry I stopped you from going to Four Winds at the last minute, but this is something that you need to see before you go."

Owen raised his eyebrows curiously.

"I think I might be able to trust you one last time." He muttered. "Care to tell me what this is about?"

Rupert shrugged.

"After publishing three of your bestsellers, I think I deserve this much trust."

They kept walking in silence until Rupert came to an abrupt halt in front of a marble tombstone gleaming against the bright sunrays.

"Take a look, Ford." He said sincerely, all the hint of humor gone. "I found this yesterday when I came here to visit my mother's grave. I can't believe I never noticed this before so I also managed to dig some information through my contacts in the management. Made sure it was the same one you were looking for."

Frowning, Owen stepped closer to the grave and squinted his eyes to read the words engraved onto the marble. When he finally read the name that it bore, he nearly jumped in shock.

"Oh, Jesus." He muttered, his eyes wide.

In the sunlight, gleaming were the words- _John Andrew Shirley._

"I told you." Rupert sighed. "They buried him here fifteen years ago. Said he died of Tuberculosis."

Owen turned to him, aghast.

"But- how-?"

"That's not the strangest thing apparently." Rupert folded his hands and looked at the tombstone in consternation.

"What is it?"

"His parents conducted the funeral." He added.

Owen's jaw nearly dropped when he heard this.

"Does that mean that he has been dead all these years?" he muttered in disbelief. "And they say his parents knew about it?"

"Yes, apparently." Rupert answered sincerely.

"How could Mrs. Shirley do this?" he murmured, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "And most importantly- _why?"_

* * *

 _Flashback_

 _Gilbert stood before Winona's front door for a good one minute, trying to muster up courage to knock._

 _He shivered in the chilling weather and pulled his hand back once again and clenched it into a tight fist. He had come over to apologize and make sure that she was fine. But he didn't know how to face her. How could he do this when he didn't know what he had done?_

 _Although he could remember a few moments where he was conscious enough to think, he recalled nothing coherent enough to decide what must have happened that night. There was a hazy memory of Winona helping him up and into her house, but nothing after that came to him even if he tried. In the morning he woke up with a terrible headache and walked outside the unfamiliar bedroom only to find Winona slumped against her front door, crying. When he had tried to ask what had happened, she had shot him an angry glare and had said that he should go. Terrified, he had left the house and had not returned since._

 _She didn't show up for work after her Christmas break and he understood that she may need more time to be comfortable around him again. For a while he hoped she would come and all the misunderstanding would be over, but she didn't return even one week after her break was over and he started getting worried. She also skipped Church for two Sundays straight and that had already been the topic of the village gossip. Apparently no one had seen her since Christmas except for grocery trips where she had looked awfully tired. That was when fear had crept to his mind. Had he done anything?_

 _There was only one way to find out._

 _He took a deep breath and knocked._

 _He waited there anxiously, hands deep in his pockets, hoping for the best. But even after he had waited for a while, no one answered the door. Nervously, he gave a light push to the front door and much to his surprise; it opened wide as it was unlocked. Frowning, he stepped inside and peered in the living room. It was a fairly small house with a tiny living room, kitchen and two little bedrooms next to each other._

 _"Winona?" he called, a little scared._

 _"Gilbert?"_

 _When his question was answered by a weak and croaking voice, he ran into the nearby bedroom, alarmed and stood there aghast to find Winona leaning over the toilet, panting._

 _"Winona!" he exclaimed and rushed over to her side._

 _Winona was leaning by the toilet, her face white and lips shaking, seemingly recovering from a horrible round of sickness. The doctor inside him woke up as he rubbed her back and gave a hand to help her up. She stood up, shaking and clutched his hand for support. Gilbert led her over to the bed and made her sit there. As he ran towards the kitchen to fetch a glass of water, Winona composed herself and rested her head against the headboard, stretching her legs. Gilbert pressed the glass to her lips and she drank some reluctantly._

 _"Winona, you should've told me you were sick." He said worriedly. "I mean, the things between us are pretty awkward, but you could have called me as a doctor."_

 _Winona's lips quivered as she spoke._

 _"There's nothing you can do about this, Gilbert." She said icily. "No one can do anything about it."_

 _Gilbert raised his eyebrows._

 _She rubbed her temples._

 _"Gilbert, I've been sick every morning followed by nausea." She said with a pointed look. "And I've spent most of my time sleeping lately."_

 _Gilbert's eyebrows almost disappeared in his hairline._

 _"Are you-"_

 _"Yes." She answered with a sigh. "I'm expecting." She croaked as a tear fell down onto her cheeks._

 _Gilbert sat there, aghast. A deadly thought came to his mind and his throat went dry for a moment._

 _"Did I do-"_

 _"Please, Gilbert!" she exclaimed. "You didn't do anything. All we did that night was sleep in the same bed and nothing else. This child is Alex's."_

 _Gilbert shifted uncomfortably in his seat._

 _"Alex Witherspoon?" he found himself speechless for a moment._

 _" Have you told him yet?" he asked slowly._

 _"No-"she muttered. "He is in Charlottetown and I hardly believe he'll ever come back."_

 _Gilbert's eyes shot up to meet hers._

 _"But he has to!" he protested. "Maybe we can go there and see if we can talk to him."_

 _"It's of no use , Gilbert." She said stonily. "We're not together anymore. And I think it's better this way."_

 _Gilbert didn't say anything and they drifted to an uncomfortable silence._

 _"Do you think I can raise this child?" she whispered, looking at him with reddened eyes._

 _"Do you want to?" he asked._

 _"That's not the point here, is it?" she muttered. "I have no another option."_

 _"How long?" he asked._

 _"Two weeks." She muttered._

 _"Do you want me to confirm it?" he asked politely._

 _She nodded._

 _"Okay." He said quietly._

 _"Gilbert?" she said in a low voice._

 _"Hmm?"_

 _"I want to have this child." She said slowly. "Is it wrong that I don't regret this?"_

 _Gilbert placed a firm hand over hers and looked at her confidently._

 _"Believe me, it isn't."_


	18. Chapter 18

Labyrinthine Eighteen

Anne shivered a little as she stepped outside the front door and onto the small steps that led to the garden. The air was a little colder than she had expected, she noticed with a shudder. She wrapped her shawl tightly around her slender form and descended the stairs for to have a look around the garden. Her observant eyes noticed that although majority of the plants were in an acceptable condition, there were a few that could use a good amount of manure; some looked under watered, while some needed to be moved to a place where they would get more sunlight. Her feet wobbled dangerously as she started to walk and she tore her gaze from the bushes and concentrated on where she was placing her foot, keeping in mind her recently healed leg.

As she walked carefully around the garden, savoring the smell of flowers, she couldn't help but admit that the small cottage-like house seemed to be straight out of the dream she had a long time ago. It was only slightly bigger than their little nest in Avonlea, but it was guarded by birch trees, accompanied by a lively stream nearby and the sea was so close that if she concentrated she could hear the waves ever so slightly over the gushing wind. The rooms were tiny, but that made the house seem much cozier than the house in Avonlea. She found herself thinking with a pang that if she and Gilbert had moved here long ago, perhaps right after their wedding, she would have loved to live in a house like this.

She sighed bitterly at this thought and looked around in dismay, realizing that Gilbert _had_ lived a life there for an entire year with someone else. Even after hearing the entire story from him and Winona, she couldn't see their yearlong marriage nonchalantly. Even though she knew it was a marriage of compromise than of love, she couldn't stop feeling like he had tried to replace Anne, unknowingly so.

She had seen Gilbert and Winona with each other. Despite the absence of any romantic attraction, there was an undeniable bond between them. At that moment, it was friendship and concern for each other's well-being, but who knew what time would have done to them? If Anne had really died, would Gilbert have fallen in love with her in a few years?

She did trust Gilbert, but she felt unsure of Winona. She had denied to find and marry Alex but had agreed when Gilbert had offered to do so. What were her feelings about Gilbert? Had she started caring for him in some way during their marriage of convenience? If not yet, , Anne believed that Winona would have fallen for a caring man like Gilbert due to her bitter experience in the past, somewhere down the road. James was already fond of Winona and they behaved with each other with an ease and comfort that made her stomach clench.

Anne felt like she had stepped back into her old life when it had started reforming itself without her existence. That they had almost succeeded in living without her and she had pushed herself back, disturbing their lives once again.

When she used to lie alone in that old bedroom in Aunt Julia's house, she often hadn't been able to get a wink of sleep all night. She kept thinking of Gilbert, James, everyone back at home and wept silently at the questions that were eating her alive. What would they be doing without her? Why weren't they sending her letters? She often had horrible nightmares that something terrible had happened or that all of them had moved away from Avonlea. She had thought of thousands of scenarios that could have taken place, but never ever had she thought that Gilbert would have married again.

 _Why aren't you more upset with your Aunt?_ Winona had asked her in disbelief, and Anne found herself contemplating the same.

Why?

Deep down, she didn't think Aunt Julia would voluntarily try to keep her from her family. She had lived without her husband for years and her son was estranged. Surely she could understand what Anne had felt! She wouldn't do this to her, there was no motive that she could think of. Aunt Julia had done everything she could to reunite Anne with her loved ones- she had written letters again and again and had posted them without fail. Aunt Julia was the one who wrote the letter to Diana.

The unanswered question still clung to her mind after ruling out these possibilities. What had happened? Why no one in Avonlea ever got her letters until Diana did?

She turned her gaze towards the sky and blinked back the tears forming in her eyes. They needed to find a way out as soon as possible before things got more complicated. She glanced at the house and wondered if she could talk to Gilbert alone about this. After they had finished telling their story, Anne had said that she needed a moment alone and had left without meeting Gilbert's eyes. She knew he thought she was mad at him and that he would be worried about her. She pursed her lips. She wasn't mad at him, but she didn't know what to make of this situation.

The sound of footsteps made her whip her head around and towards the road. A young man with long hair that brushed his shoulders stood there by a tree, his eyes fixed on the house. The iciness in his gaze sent a chill down her spine. Slowly his eyes moved towards her and she instinctively took a step back. He didn't look at her for long, his eyes soon moving away as he backed into the woods once again.

Scared, Anne moved away from the garden and went into the house as fast as she could.

* * *

Julia Shirley held the photograph in her quivering hands as a single tear made its way from her eye down her reddened cheek. Her husband smiled warmly at the camera, one hand draped around their teenager son and grasped Julia's hand with the other. She looked a lot younger and her smile was more wide and radiant as she held onto her husband's hand tightly. They looked so happy there- more than they actually had been, she admitted to herself. After all, John had run away from home three months after the picture was taken with nothing but a brief note left for her and David.

She dropped it back into the box and closed the lid tightly. It was full of such pictures, small mementoes and gifts that she couldn't bear to look at. If Linda hadn't found it in the attic while cleaning, she would've forgotten it was even there. David had put that box away from their eyes years ago and she had never asked him where he put it. Her marriage with David had already been through a rough patch the year before John left- after she had found out about David's affair. If anything had stopped her from pushing him out of her life, it was her son.

She sighed and dropped the box on the floor to push it under her bed. David was long gone now and she had somehow managed to accept the fact that he had merely made a mistake. He had truly resented in for the rest of his life and she had noticed the countless unspoken apologies that he had made to her through his actions. She had bravely put that incident in the past now.

Before she got up to tend to her house once again, she paused for a moment to open a drawer and pulled out a bunch of letters tied together. She had seen John's frail body lying motionless in the cold, stiff coffin and that sight had haunted her ever since. But then these letters had started coming and a silly hope had consumed her mind. Perhaps someone was playing a cruel game with her but there was still a chance that she would find a part of her family again, just like Anne had.

And she wouldn't stop searching for him until then.

* * *

 _Author's Note_

 _Hi everyone!_

 _We are at a very crucial point in the story and things are going to move pretty quickly after this. A lot of mysteries will begin to solve now including the letters and what really happened to John Shirley._

 _I want to thank you all for putting up with my slow updates. If you have read and liked Labyrinthine, please leave a review, even if it's just one line. Reading your thoughts and feedback is what keeps me going. :)_

 _Lastly, I've fixed the pregnancy timeline error that some of you pointed out through reviews and PMs. If you find any other consistencies, please let me know so that no one gets confused!_

 _Thank you again for all reviews, follows, favorites and reads._

 _Love,_

 _Ashwini_


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

Anne woke up the next morning to find Gilbert and Winona at the kitchen table, seemingly arguing over something over two steaming cups of tea.

Gilbert had insisted Anne slept in the guest room so that she wouldn't have to climb the stairs and thanks to that, she could easily see and hear them while standing in the doorframe of her room, still in her nightclothes and her long hair neatly tucked into a rope like braid. She noticed that even though it was quite early, Gilbert was fully dressed and his doctor's bag that she recognized from their Avonlea days was resting against the foot of his chair.

"You can't convince me to stay here." Winona said firmly as she leaned slightly towards the table with her fist clenched. "No matter how logical and sensible your reasons are-"

Gilbert rubbed his temples with his fingers, exhaustion clearly showing on his face. Anne wondered if he had slept at all the previous night.

"You know how your father is." He said slowly, trying to resonate with her. "His housekeeper said he throws tantrums like a child at least twice in one day and that he refuses to take the medicines that I give to him. You have seen that he hasn't been on his best behavior lately, especially when you're around. Do you really believe I'm wrong when I say that you shouldn't be there?"

Winona buried her face in her hands.

"I just- I want to know how bad it is." She croaked through her trembling fingers. "I want to know if he's going to- if something's going to happen to him. I know that he has been terrible with me and I just want to know why. I can't let him go like this!"

Gilbert looked down at his cup thoughtfully and when he raised his eyes they darted across the room to rest on her. Despite the worry and exhaustion on his face he managed to give her a genuine smile that hardly reached his tired eyes. Not fooled by his demeanor, Anne walked towards them quickly, slightly tense at the seemingly serious situation.

"Is everything alright?" she asked softly.

Gilbert looked at Winona swiftly, an unspoken question in his eyes. Winona wiped her face gently with her handkerchief and glanced at Anne.

"My father has been sick for the past month." She spoke in a hushed voice. "Gilbert suspects he has tuberculosis but he refuses to take any kind of treatment- it's as if he wants to-"

"Winona," Gilbert said sternly. "Don't say that."

"But it's the truth, isn't it?" she said desperately. "He has always been like this. He becomes destructive when he's guilty or in pain or-" she couldn't speak further and looked away.

Anne was utterly confused by their dialogue and just stood there wondering if she would be prying if she asks what was wrong between Winona and her father. She decided not to go down that road at that moment and gently rested a hand on Winona's shoulder; a gesture she never thought she would do for her.

"Winona, perhaps it's not my place to say this, but I think Gilbert is right." She said slowly. "You're very emotional right now and if Gilbert thinks it's best for you to stay here then you should listen to him. He has always insisted that a patient should be as calm as possible during his treatments."

Gilbert looked at her quizzically, perhaps surprised at the empathy she had shown towards Winona. But Anne didn't look at him for long and turned her eyes to Winona.

Winona removed her hands from her face and placed them on the table gingerly.

"Promise me that you wouldn't try to hide anything. If it's really bad you'll-"

"I'll tell you." He assured her as he got up from his chair and picked up his bag. "No matter what the truth is, I'll say it. And if the need arises I'll call you and ask you to come there. Does he have a telephone?"

She nodded weakly.

"Good. I'll be on my way as soon as possible." He put his hat on and squeezed Winona's shoulder gently and looked at Anne.

"You go, Gilbert. I'll manage everything." She said and planted a soft kiss on his pale cheek. When she retreated she saw something like hope and appreciation in his hazel eyes.

"I know, Anne-girl."

* * *

 _You're not my daughter!_

The words still pierced through her heart as she thought of them. The memory was vivid in her head like it had happened only a moment ago. The trembling of his hands, his widened eyes and the sheer hatred dripping through every word that he said- everything etched upon her memory even after all these years.

 _Was he really her father?_

He had been a normal, loving father for the first twelve years of her life. Papa, as she used to call him, would take her with him to the farm in the summer and she would watch him work while she studied or read a book or wrote the silly things that she used to call poetry sitting under the large tree nearby. He had taught her all things considered boyish right from climbing trees to whistling and he had done so proudly until her mother had scolded him for turning her unladylike. He had built a swing for her in their backyard where she would love to sit in the early morning as her mother braided her hair. Then as they laughed and sang together, her father would come out, dressed for a long day in the farm and would leave only after kissing her mother lovingly on the lips and ruffling Winona's hair as if she were a boy that made her mother look sternly at him.

 _He loved her mother so much._

She had seen it in his eyes every time he looked at her. Her father was like any other farmer in the town- average looking with a thick beard and an enthusiastic smile but her mother was something else. Many said she didn't belong to a small town like theirs, but in the city wearing clothes that came from Paris holding the hand of her rich, charming husband. Beautiful, witty and positive- Emmeline Smith, the town's beauty queen had horrified them by marrying Andrew Smith, the man anyone hardly noticed. Their love used to make her believe in fairytales- a beautiful princess running away with the stable boy, leaving a castle behind for love.

But when she turned twelve, things had started to go downhill.

She could still remember the first fight. As Winona had returned from school one day, she had heard them shouting at each other in their bedroom and had stood in the kitchen, frozen. They had bickered in the past, but never with their voices raised and tones insulting. She couldn't comprehend what they were fighting about, but she could hear her mother sobbing and begging for forgiveness while her father cried and said that no matter how much he wants to, he couldn't forget what she did to him.

 _And he never did._

The change was as abrupt as blowing a burning candle off. Suddenly her father was cold to her and mother more protective. When her father was away, Mother would often cry when she thought Winona wasn't looking and when he was home, she would stay quiet as if afraid of doing anything that might attract his attention. He became moody and often came home late and drunk. He wouldn't speak to Winona like he used to and she had often found him sitting alone in the dark in the same old swing where they had shared many happy moments.

 _She had never known what her mother did and she had never asked._

By the time she turned sixteen, her father had started spending most of his time in his parents' house in the village which was empty after her grandparents had died. He came home occasionally, sometimes to give money or to make sure her mother didn't need his help with anything. Whether he did that out of love, affection or a sense of duty, she could never tell. Slowly, his visits came to a stop and her mother didn't know how to make a living for the two of them. That was when the debts had started piling up.

Winona couldn't bear to see her mother go through this. All her beauty was gone and only a haunted look remained in those beautiful eyes. Her rosy cheeks went hollow and her hair thinned so horribly, anyone from the village hardly recognized her. Was she wallowing in guilt or blaming her husband, Winona could never tell. She didn't know which one of her parents were right, but she knew that her mother needed her more. So she stayed with her loyally, until that dreaded night.

Her mother had a horrible cough and the fever was rising and the ticking clock seemed like a countdown to her scared self. Her mother had no money to pay any doctor and Winona didn't know how to reach one in the night like that. Desperate for help, she had ran through the woods towards her father's house and had knocked on his door persistently until he answered, a tumbler of whiskey in his hand.

"What do you want?" he had growled at her.

With his beard shaved off, Winona barely recognized him.

"Mother is sick." She managed to croak. "I need you to go get a doctor."

He had called the doctor immediately, much to her surprise. But he never offered to accompany her when the doctor stopped his buggy in front of his house.

"You wont come with me?" she asked weakly, her last thread of hope breaking. "I need you."

"Why?" he asked narrowing his eyes.

"I'm your d-"

He raised his hand to stop her midsentence.

"No, you're not."

Tears flowed down her face even now as she thought of it.

Why? What had happened? She had never found any answers and she didn't know if she would trust him anymore if he said something bad about her mother. She wouldn't care about him either but somewhere in the depths of her mind there was that happy picture of her sitting on the swing with her mother as Father left for work. Was it hope, natural love, affection, she didn't know.

But if he was dying, she wanted to be there.

Perhaps she was silly enough to hope for a redemption like a novel or sane enough to know that the secret that broke her family would be gone forever with him. She wanted to ask him for one last time-

What had happened?

* * *

Alex could not figure out who that woman was.

He had never seen her in the town before and had never heard about anyone like her from Winona. Perhaps she was some relative of that doctor, he thought with his fist clenched.

Any thought related to him ignited a fire within him.

He sighed and slammed his empty glass on his kitchen counter. No matter how much he drank, he couldn't get her out of his head.

Winona, lying in a meadow beside him in the sun, her eyes half closed and posture relaxed. The way she looked when she was peacefully asleep, cradled in his arms. The crinkles by her eyes when she spoke about something passionately. How pretty she looked when she flashed a genuine smile towards him.

God, he loved her! She ignited a fire within him that nobody had been able to. Her kisses, her smiles, the little arguments, the friendship, everything haunting him ever since he had left. Ever since he had saw her in bed with another man.

He had always feared this would happen. She did deserve everything that Doctor Blythe was giving to her- comfort, safety, home, a child, a family.

A family he would never have.

Alex knew that his actions had made him lose her and after watching her often from the shadows, in her new home and life, he was convinced that she would never be his again. He was the one who had left her alone and had never trusted her, despite all efforts. He was sure that their fight had made her go to Gilbert instead.

He wondered if that woman would tell her that she had seen a strange man watching the house from the woods. If nothing else, his long locks would give him away and she would know that he was there. Would she come over to tell him not to stalk her? Would he get to see her one last time before he left forever?

He hoped she wouldn't.

If he was going to leave forever, he wanted to remember her sitting on the steps that lead to her house, cradling her baby in her hands, waiting for her husband to come home.

He glanced at his wallet at the train ticket that he had booked for Charlottetown. The publisher had accepted his book and he was going to start a new life far away from Four Winds, hoping he would never have to return. He had been there again for a month, and she had never tried to reach out to him. After he had watched her for a few days, he had realized that she didn't need him anymore.

Would she read his book when it would be published? Would she like it?

He hoped she would and that it would remind her of the time that they had shared together.

He was obsessive, jealous, hotheaded and was never truly worthy of her, he thought with a sigh.

But he did love her. And that was why he was saying goodbye.

For the last time.

* * *

Author's Note:

Hello folks!

I'm very sorry for making you guys wait for so long for this chapter! I know it seems like nothing much happened here, but believe me, this was important for the story. Anyway, I don't want to keep you guys waiting for another month- the next chapter is ready to be posted so I'll put it up this weeked once many of you have read this one. This chapter originally consisted of another part but I've decided to include it in the next one for better continuity.

Stay tuned because the next chapter may or may not have a big revelation. ;)

Until then, if you like this story, do let me know by posting a review below, even if it's just two words long. :D

Love,

Ashwini.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

Gilbert peered out of the living room window to see the beautiful surrounding of the house slowly sinking into darkness. Night had finally fallen and the pressure within him was rising with the full moon. He had spent the previous night tossing and turning in bed, acutely conscious of the fact that he was sharing a bed with another woman while Anne slept in the spare room. Glancing over at the pillow and blanket that he had set up on the couch, he wondered if Winona would understand his decision of sleeping out there.

That day had not been an easy one. He had spent most of his time at Winona's father's house, tending to him as muttered non-stop under the influence of high fever. All the negativity and guilt of so many years had come out of him in the state of delusion and the things he said had consumed Gilbert's mind ever since. He didn't know if it was the truth or not, but the words that patients said in that state usually were a reflection of their dominating thoughts and suppressed feelings. When he himself was lying unconscious in his childhood bedroom in Avonlea fighting for his life, he had often said Anne's name and the bitterness of her rejection had flowed in the form of incoherent ramblings very often.

 _Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free._

Gilbert had believed these words wholeheartedly his entire life, but today, he battled with himself in his mind whether or not to tell Winona what her father had said. He was already going to cause her enough pain and he didn't want her to go through ever more by telling her that the man lying on his deathbed wasn't her real father.

He thought of a particular envelope lying on his office table and wondered if she would agree with his suggestion. It was tough, but he was determined not to leave with Anne until he provided Winona with the best life that he could. He quietly decided to talk to her about it as soon as possible, and turned to provide his weary body with some rest .

He stopped abruptly as he saw Anne standing in the kitchen door, looking at him with surprise.

"You-you're going to sleep out here?" she asked softly. He couldn't tell if she was surprised or relieved so he shrugged.

"Well, I-" he paused and ran a hand through his hair. "I couldn't sleep there."

She walked towards him slowly for what felt like an eternity and sat down on the couch. She gestured for him to sit down and he did, his eyes focused intently on hers.

"You don't have to do this, Gilbert." She said.

Gilbert sighed and rested his head on the back of the couch.

"I mean it, Gilbert." She continued deliberately.

"I know you don't, Anne." He spoke firmly and looked at her. "I know this causes you pain. I can understand how difficult it is for you to be around both of us."

Anne looked down at her hands resting in her lap. Gilbert grasped her slender hand and lightly traced the wedding band that still graced her fingers. She turned towards him with an unreadable expression in her eyes and shivered slightly in the coldness of the night. Instinctively he pulled her against his chest and wrapped his hands around her.

"I missed you." He said intently, his warm breath making her skin tingle. The rawness in his voice and words made her snuggle closer to him. He nuzzled her neck as she pressed his rough hand to her lips.

"I can't live like this anymore, Gilbert." She spoke abruptly and his hand tightened around hers. "I just wish things would go back to the way they were."

Gilbert released her gently and looked at her with a serious face.

"They can." He said sincerely, searching her eyes.

She raised her eyebrows.

"We have a neighbor named Leslie-" he began.

"I know." Anne interrupted. "She was the one my Aunt boarded with a few years ago."

Gilbert nodded.

"Yes. She recently found out that her husband has been dead for years- that's actually a story for another day." He took a deep breath. "Anyways, she had told me a few days ago that she was planning to take up a nursing course in the fall as a beginning of a new life." He looked at Anne pointedly.

"And you want to send Winona there?" she asked, surprised.

"Well, she has been excellent when she was working for me and she has plenty of experience as well." He said thoughtfully. "I think she would make a good nurse."

Anne looked at him, horrified.

"Gilbert, you don't believe she would be able to balance a full time course with taking care of a child, do you?"

Gilbert looked at her nervously.

"What if we take care of Nora?" he asked.

* * *

Owen Ford did not have much hope as he stood before the front door of Doctor Brown's little house in the outskirts of Bolingbroke. The chances of the doctor revealing his patient's confidential details were next to none but he believed it was worth a try. He had spent _years_ trying to find out what had happened to his childhood friend and Dr. Brown was going to be a final try before he would accept that he had reached a dead end. Just as he raised his fist to knock, a middle-aged woman with greying hair and tired eyes opened the door and glared at him quizzically.

"The doctor is not well enough to visit." She said irritably and almost shut the door on his face before he eagerly held on to it.

"I am not a patient, Mrs. Brown." He said defensively. "I'm Owen Ford. Alice Ford's son if you remember."

The woman's eyes lit up in recognition and she offered him a bright smile.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't recognize you, dearie! I haven't seen you in years after all!" she exclaimed, standing aside to let them in. "I've been on my nerve since morning. Apparently, none of the townsfolk are ready to accept the fact that even the doctor needs a couple days of bed rest when he has a flu."

Owen smiled as Mrs. Brown took his coat and he sat down on one of the chairs in his living room. The lady disappeared into the bedroom and peered out after a while.

"You can come in." she said, beckoning him in.

His heart thumping loudly in his chest, he walked into the room to find Dr. Brown sitting up on his bed, red faced and recovering from a coughing fit.

Owen opened his mouth to apologize but the doctor waved a hand nonchalantly in the air and asked him to sit down on the chair that his wife produced.

"I know you wouldn't be here if it wasn't anything important." He said hoarsely, his eyes narrowed with worry.

Owen nodded and glanced nervously as Mrs. Brown walked out and shut the door behind her.

"It's about John, isn't it?" he asked. "Tell me."

"I was in Georgetown a few days ago to meet my publisher." Owen said nervously. "And my friend- the publisher- showed me a grave of a person called John Andrew Shirley who had died long back." He paused to see any hint of surprise on the doctor's face, but he couldn't find it. He merely let out a long sigh and looked apologetically at Owen.

"I know about that." He said slowly. "I have found out only recently that the boy has been dead for years, but-"

"You couldn't tell me?" Owen said in disbelief. "Both of you knew that I have been looking for a dead person for all these years but you never cared enough to-"

Dr. Brown raised a hand to stop him.

"Julia and David never told anyone that their son was dead, not even me." He said. "It is difficult to believe, but you know how secretive the Shirleys are. They returned to Bolingbroke years after Walter and Bertha died and no one knows where they had been for all those years and neither do I. Julia has only recently confided in me that her son died yet she has been receiving letters written by him."

Owen's eyes widened

"What?" he exclaimed. "But that's-"

"Impossible." Dr. Brown nodded. "I know it is. And I am going to investigate further as soon as I get well. I have brought home the letters that Julia has received and I am going to see if I can decipher anything from them."

Owen thought for a moment. Having the letters was an excellent advantage. He could look if there were any postal stamps or if the handwriting was familiar.

"Can I have a look at the letters?" he asked. "Maybe borrow one?"

Dr. Brown nodded and gestured towards his wardrobe.

"Help yourself. In the top drawer."

Owen walked across the room and opened the said drawer to see a pile of letters addressed to Mrs. Julia Shirley.

"You may take one if you wish." Dr. Brown managed to say before he began coughing violently.

Owen had almost turned to help him with a glass of water when he noticed the name written on another bunch of letters that were kept in that drawer. As the doctor turned to sip water from the glass on his bedside table, he pulled out one letter each from both the piles and pocketed them.

He was curious to find out how Julia Shirley had received letters from her dead son. But he was also eager to find out another thing- why did Doctor Brown have a bunch of letters addressed to Dr. Gilbert Blythe of Avonlea in his wardrobe?

* * *

Author's Note:

Thank you so much for all those who have reviewed, followed or favourited this story! I hope you'll enjoy this quick update. :) Don't forget to let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review in the box below- whether short or long! Reading what you guys think make my day. :D

Love,

Ashwini.


	21. Chapter 21

Labyrinthine Chapter Twenty One

Anne moved the brush absently through her long hair as she prepared for bed, mind heavy with the weight that Gilbert had bestowed upon her two nights ago. When she had asked for time to think, he had said that she could have as much as she needed, but there was an impatience in his eyes that made her feel a pang of guilt. Whenever their eyes met after that night, she could see a plea in his hazel eyes; a look that reminded her that they were running out of time. It vanished within a moment, leaving a careful smile behind, but it put a strange pressure on her.

She had never had to make such a life-altering decision before.

At first, Anne was sure Winona would decline the offer that Gilbert was placing before her; but after raking her brains over the subject for two days, she secretly agreed that it was the best they could do. They were offering Winona a chance to have a steady future where she would be able to take care of herself and her child. She had chosen to marry Gilbert for similar reasons and Anne was sure she would accept the opportunity reluctantly, but surely.

The question that haunted her was- would she be able to take care of Nora?

She knew that she should have agreed to this arrangement immediately and wholeheartedly. Hadn't Winona taken care of James so selflessly for a year? But there was a tiny fragment of doubt that she couldn't shake off even though she was ashamed of it. Taking care of Nora was going to complicate things even further. What would they say to the society about their arrangement? How were they going to explain her reappearance? Would anyone even believe the truth if they told? Gilbert's practice was so well here that she didn't want to ask him to go back to Avonlea. And even if they did move there, they needed an explanation about the presence of Nora.

She set the brush down and sat down on the vanity chair, staring at her own reflection. Everything was so tangled that she couldn't think of anything that might solve it all. She wished she could just transport herself back to her old life, where she was certain of having a future with Gilbert. Sadly, that wasn't how life worked. She wasn't going to disappear, she had to fight her way through it all.

* * *

Gilbert's face was so grave when he came home in the evening that Winona felt a shiver go down her spine. She was sitting on her favourite spot on the stairs with Nora on her lap and her heart beat furiously as he made his way towards her from the buggy. It was a beautiful windy evening, but everything felt still when she looked up at Gilbert's tired face.

She gulped.

"What is it?"

Gilbert ran a hand through his hair and looked at her with uncertainty.

"We are doing everything we can, trust me." He said. "But I cannot lie to you, Winona- he doesn't seem to have much time left."

Winona shuddered violently and Gilbert bent down to swiftly take the sleeping Nora from her arms. She put a quivering hand over her mouth.

"Oh my God." She whispered.

"If you really wish to, you can come to see him tomorrow morning." He said cautiously, cradling Nora gently in his arms.

Winona merely nodded as she felt the hotness of tears against her cold cheek.

"I'll take her inside." Gilbert muttered and walked through the front door, leaving her gratefully alone. She wiped the tears away with her handkerchief, her mind filled with a surprisingly strong pain.

She hadn't had any fatherly relations with him for half of her life and he had never done anything for her. Yet the possibility of him dying shook her. He was the only attachment left for her- with everyone else gone. Her mother had left her followed by Alex. When she had tried to find a sense of security with Gilbert, he was about to leave her too. Apart from Nora, her father was the only person who was bound to be related to her, no matter how much he tried to run away. She realized that even after all this time, she hadn't completely given up on the possibility that he might repent his actions and come back to her.

Winona had faced heartbreak over and over again, but she had never stopped fighting for the people she cared for. She kept giving chances to Alex in the past and hoped that one day her father would realize his many mistakes. It was one of the many things about herself she couldn't change- this was a part of her.

Her Grandmother had once told her that happiness and pain come revolve in a human's life like cycles and not one lasts forever. She had made it through the tough days by believing precisely that. But now as she felt every single person she loved slip away from her, she found it difficult to believe that the wheel would turn ever again.

* * *

Leslie had never thought she would hear from him again.

Well, that wasn't exactly true, she admitted in defeat. She _had_ made several trips to the post office with a beating heart, wondering if she would receive a letter bearing his name, even though she never admitted it even to herself. Before she had found out about George Moore, she had a reason to forget him and to let herself stop from thinking about him. But ever since she had found her newfound freedom, she had lost herself often into the daydreams of him and a possible life with him.

But when the postmaster had finally handed her a letter with his terrible handwriting on top, she hadn't imagined it to be the bearer of a shocking news entirely unrelated to the feelings that had blossomed between them during the past summer.

She had read the letter three times before she dared to believe its contents.

Apparently some doctor in Bolingbroke had purposefully kept Gilbert in the dark, hiding from him the fact that his wife was alive for one year. Owen had asked her if she could talk to him about this because he didn't even know whether Gilbert had learned the truth about Anne yet. He simply thought it would be wiser to let him know about what he had found before taking any actions. He had said that he was to stay in Bolingbroke until she replied.

Leslie scanned the letter once again and despite the confusion that she the letter had left her in, she felt disappointed. There was nothing in the letter about his feelings or about the unnamed bond that they had shared. It seemed like a bland, plain, enquiry letter that you would send to an acquaintance.

 _Perhaps he was caught up in confusion about the whole Gilbert-Anne situation._ She tried to pacify herself.

Also he had mentioned that he was waiting for her reply so that he could pay his promised visit to Four Winds. He had finished his manuscript and couldn't wait to show it to Captain Jim.

She sighed and put the letter away. She believed things would be clearer once she spoke to him in person and she would be free to begin a new life. If he didn't want to be with her the way she did, she had the forms that she needed to fill up for the nursing course she was planning to take.

And if he did feel the same- no, she didn't dare hope.

With a sudden wave of determination she decided to make this uncertainty end as soon as possible. It wasn't that dark yet and she could still pay a visit to her neighbors.

* * *

When evening came, James was jumping around the garden, talking to himself as he brandished a long twig in the air like a sword. Anne pressed her forehead against the cool glass of the spare room window, watching his enthusiasm with a small smile. Oh, how much she had missed seeing him like this! It was truly a bliss to watch children when they were in their own element, free from restrictions and fear of embarrassment. No decisions to make and no consequences to care about.

"James!"

Anne turned her head to see Winona standing on the porch, hands on hips, looking at the little boy. She was dressed in a simple powder blue gown and had an apron tied around her waist. Though she looked normal, the exhaustion and worry was inevitably showing on her pale face.

"Coming!" James cheered and ran towards her after dropping the twig on the grass. Winona crouched down as he approached her and shook her head exasperatedly at the state of his clothing.

"Look at the mud stains!" she cried, annoyed and pulled him close to examine the stains more closely. "Did you roll around in the grass?"

"The enemies were throwing blasts at me so I had to hide!" he explained.

"I must ask Gilbert not to tell you any war stories." Winona muttered. "Come, let's wash your shirt before the stains set!"

"But I want to play some more!" James exclaimed and stomped one foot.

Winona tilted her head to one side.

"It's getting dark, dear." She said.

"Soldiers shouldn't be afraid of the dark." He said proudly. "Dad has told me."

"But you're still a tiny soldier, aren't you?" she pleaded. "I'll help you find something else that you could wear tomorrow and then you can play as long as you want to. Let's go find something that we wouldn't mind throwing away."

Anne looked at them, mesmerized as Winona gently nudged him inside the house, talking to him softly all the while. There was something between them that made her heart clench, something that was far beyond jealousy. Something that she could not put into words.

There was love, care and an undeniable bond.

The simple exchange was nothing out of ordinary. She could easily remember several occasions back in Avonlea when she had easily engaged in simple conversations like this with James. But that was what struck her the most- the normalcy between them. All along she had assumed that James had grown close to Winona as a habit or due to her absence. But it was much more than that.

Winona loved him.

Her vision blurred and she hastily wiped the tears away. She realized that Winona had given everything to her son in her absence and she had only been selfish in return.

In the heat of the moment, she left the room swiftly and walked out to knock on the door of Gilbert's office.

"Come in." he said in a cool business-like tone, probably expecting the visit from a patient.

When Anne pushed the door open, she saw him sitting behind his desk, carefully examining a patient's file while taking notes. He looked up at her and paused, surprised at her abrupt entry and rattled by her reddened cheeks and sobs.

"Anne-girl?" he said softly, his voice concerned. "What's the matter? Are you-"

"I'll do it." She said in a quivering voice. "I'll take care of her."

"What?" he asked, confused.

"Nora." She said. "I'm ready to do it."

Gilbert walked towards her in a daze and pulled her close for a passionate kiss.

"I knew you'd understand." He said proudly.

Lost in each other's embrace, they never noticed that through the opened door Winona had listened to their conversation without context and had already assumed the worst.

That they were planning to take Nora by brushing her aside conveniently.

And it was the one thing she could never bear.

* * *

Author's Note:-

Hello everyone! Sorry I kept you waiting for so long!

We are rapidly nearing the end of the story and soon all the confusion would be clear, I promise.

Keep sending love through follows, favourites and reviews! They really help me keep going through the tough days when I don't feel like writing everything!

Love,

Ashwini.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty Two

It happened on a quiet night in October while Winona was preparing supper in the evening, humming a song to herself in a low voice.

When she saw Gilbert's buggy come up the lane and towards the house without him, the tune died on her lips and suddenly she knew what had happened. The ladle that she had been holding dropped onto the kitchen floor within milliseconds. The abrupt sound was loud enough to startle Anne who had been laying plates on the table, wondering when Gilbert would be home.

Anne had been surprisingly calm throughout that night and that had been a great relief for Winona. She had turned the stove off and had carefully led a shaking Winona to the living room, trying to comfort her. Gilbert had sent her father's help from the farm to inform them of his death, asking Winona to come there at once.

"Don't worry about the children," Anne had assured her as she absently put on a coat and a hat to protect herself from the wind. She barely noticed any of it as the buggy rode under the twinkling night sky.

Her father was dead.

The house was exactly as she remembered, only a few changes had been made to its interior, but she barely recognized the frail, limp body that lay on a four poster bed in the bedroom upstairs, only the dark beard tinted with grey seemed a little familiar to her eyes. Gilbert placed a firm hand on her shoulder as the nurse hurried around the room, picking up medicines and tidying the sheets around the man.

"I did everything I could." His voice was grave.

Winona nodded and pressed her lips firmly together.

"Is there anyone else that we should inform?" he asked.

She shook her head in silent negation and he began to instruct the nurse as to what was to be done after that. She walked towards the bed and looked at him for the last time, unsure of how she should feel. It would have been so different if only he had remained the person that he had been in her childhood and not the cold, distant man that she had always remembered. She stood there, stuck between mourning and the feeling of having lost something that she never really had. Suddenly, the feeling that another person that she had expected love from had left her began to overwhelm her body and mind.

And she broke down right there on the bedroom floor, violent sobs escaping her quivering lips. She had never felt more alone in her entire life.

* * *

Leslie had barely set a foot on the small road that led to Winona's house when she heard a buggy come up from behind her. She turned and squinted her eyes in the falling darkness and was surprised to see that the buggy belonged to none other than Gilbert Blythe. She stepped aside onto the road, hoping that Gilbert would see her and stop by but the buggy strode past her, an unfamiliar man leading it towards the house.

It was quite unusual that Gilbert would lend his buggy to someone else unless there was an emergency. With a pang she remembered that he had been driving to Winona's father's house every day that week. She sensed that something must have happened.

She clutched the letter tightly in her hand. Should she even go there at such a time? She didn't want to upset Winona even more with the information that she had but it was also important that someone knew what Owen had discovered.

She stood frozen to the ground, waiting with a thundering heart. Soon enough, an alarmingly composed Winona stepped out of the house in her everyday clothes and a coat wrapped haphazardly around her. Instinctively, Leslie stepped into the shadow of a tall birch tree as the buggy strode past her and into the darkness. Oh, how she wished she could go with her friend! But she did not want to wait anymore to tell someone what she had discovered.

She looked at the small house and wondered if Anne Blythe would understand. But it didn't matter, she had to try anyway.

* * *

Anne felt like her head was spinning.

She had been lying on the bed, sleepless since almost two hours, with James snoring peacefully beside her. That day had been nothing but a whirlwind. Gilbert had been at Winona's father's house since morning and he hadn't returned with Winona yet. As if it wasn't enough that she was worried, Leslie Moore had come over to tell something that came over her like a blow.

During the past few days, she had struggled to believe that someone had purposefully tried to keep her and Gilbert apart. She was almost convinced that it might be Aunt Julia whose grief had made her do something so terrible.

But she had never thought it would be Doctor Brown.

He was the one who had saved her life- she had felt that she would always be indebted to him in some way. She wanted to know why he did what he did. He wondered if Gilbert would agree that both of them needed to go to Bolingbroke to sort out the mess that had been created.

She needed to know what had happened.

She needed to go.

* * *

Owen Ford had tried his best to stay in his hotel room and try not to bump into Dr Brown or Mrs. Shirley. He had made several trips to the post office though and Leslie had not replied yet. He planned to confront the doctor and Mrs Shirley only after he had confirmed that Anne Blythe was safely at home with Gilbert.

But when Linda came there looking for him one night with wide eyes and sweaty brow, telling him that Mrs. Shirley was sick, he had no other option left. He promptly got up from his desk chair, slung his coat over his shoulders and followed her into the dark.

As they walked hurriedly down the street, he slid his hand casually in the pockets of his trousers, making sure that the letter that he had pocketed was still there. He left a small sigh of relief as he felt the cool paper against his fingers.

There was a war going on in his mind.

He had found the letters in Dr Brown's house. He knew someone had been writing letters to Mrs. Shirley making her falsely believe that her son was alive. Dr Brown could easily be behind all this. Should he confront him or wait till he had heard from Leslie?

His mind sank as he thought of her. The letter that he wrote was not the one he had wanted to write to her. It was a dry, brief letter as opposed to the romantic epistles that he wished he could write to her. But he pushed that thought away instantly. He needed to focus on what was happening.

Owen was still fighting with himself when they reached Mrs. Shirley's house. The aging lady was shivering under a pile of blankets in her bedroom while Dr Brown knelt beside her to check the fever. The nurse was busy wiping her forehead with a clean, wet cloth. Owen retreated towards the living room politely and tapped his foot impatiently as he waited.

Dr Brown emerged from the bedroom after a few minutes and Owen straightened unconsciously.

"What happened?" he asked.

The doctor's face was quite grave when he spoke.

"I think it's typhoid." He said.

Owen pursed his lips.

"And what do you think?" he questioned, feeling a little scared.

"It's rather hard to say at the moment." He said. "All we can do is wait and try our best to keep her out of danger. I just thought you should know she isn't well. Someone needs to look after her if I have to go away in the morning."

Owen nodded solemnly, but he found himself unable to trust the doctor anymore. Even though he didn't know for sure, there was a possibility that Dr Brown did not have good intentions towards Mrs. Shirley. He decided to stop waiting for Leslie's reply and make a phone call to Gilbert Blythe, asking him to come to Bolingbroke right away, whether he was with Anne or not.

* * *

Author's Note:

Hello, all!

First of all, let me apologize for being MIA for almost three months now. I hadn't given up on this story and I was aware that you guys were waiting eagerly to see this mess resolve, but I could find no inspiration to actually sit down and write another chapter. Real life hasn't been very kind to me lately. Due to some personal issues and a new hectic job, I was in a place where I couldn't bring myself to write anything at all.

I am thankful for those of you who found time to send messages and reviews asking if I was okay and whether I was planning to update. A special shoutout to DrinkThemIn because their review motivated me to edit the draft that had been ignored for one and a half month. Thank you so much to all of you for the love and support you've given to this story!

I am in a much better place now and I have decided that I would finish this story no matter what. Thank you again for being so understanding! I hope you enjoyed the update.

Keep the reviews coming! They make my day extra special. :)

Love,

Ashwini


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